Tale As Old As Time
by EternalFlame0410
Summary: When the Original witch realizes what an abomination Klaus has become, she casts a spell that prohibits him and his siblings from venturing too far from their estate. The curse can only be broken if he learns to love, and is loved in return. But who could ever learn to love this hybrid? Based on Beauty and the Beast.
1. Chapter 1

**Summary: When the Original witch realizes what an abomination Klaus has become, she casts a spell that prohibits him and his siblings from venturing too far from their estate. The curse can only be broken if he learns to love, and is loved in return. But who could ever learn to love this hybrid? Based on Beauty and the Beast.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or any of its characters.**

**A/N: Hi, readers! There will be a few small changes from the original story. In this story, Esther allowed Klaus to be a hybrid. Instead of casting a spell on him to prevent his werewolf form from manifesting, she casts the spell that keeps the Originals from leaving their home, which means Klaus didn't rip out her heart for keeping him from becoming a true hybrid. Also, this takes place in present day and Caroline is still a vampire.**

-xxx-

Mystic Falls was a small town. Everybody knew everybody's business, and if you were new to town, flying under the radar would be next to impossible. People could pick out an unfamiliar face immediately. Because of this, everybody in the town felt safe. There were no strangers and no one to be wary of. But the citizens of Mystic Falls were scared of one thing: the woods.

One part of the woods was safe. There was a road that went through it, and people drove on it all the time and teenagers had their parties near it. The other part lies deep in the woods. Hardly anybody goes there, because those who have dared to wander that far have all gone missing.

What the Mystic Falls residents don't know is that in the deep woods, there lies a house. It's more of an estate, really. It's large and is surrounded by gardens filled with every flower imaginable and stables with horses that rarely ever get ridden.

Contrary to the light exterior of the mansion, the owners are dark and intimidating. There are five of them; Finn, Kol, Elijah, Rebekah, and Klaus. They're all siblings and they're all vampires, but they're no ordinary vampires. They're Originals.

Klaus was different from his siblings. His mother had an affair a thousand years ago with a man who happened to be a werewolf. When she cast the spell that made them immortal, it became obvious that Klaus was much more than just a vampire. He was a hybrid.

After witnessing Klaus massacre an entire village, she decided to put an end to this abomination. She cast a spell, trapping him and the rest of her children in their home. They can only venture out as far as a mile before they run into the barrier that keeps them from leaving. They can survive off of the animals in the forest, but occasionally there will be a human that wanders too far into the woods.

The only way to break the curse is if Klaus finds someone whom he loves, and who will love him in return. The Original witch figured that this would be impossible, considering Klaus's inability to care for anyone other than himself. However, she still put a time limit on it. If he couldn't break the spell in twenty-one years, he and his siblings would be trapped there forever. In their house is an enchanted rose that wilts little by little as the years go on. When their time is up, it will be dead.

The twenty-one year mark was approaching quickly, but Klaus wasn't anywhere near breaking the curse. He had begun to give up hope, for who could ever learn to care for _him_?

-xxx-

Caroline walked across the school lawn, heading for the parking lot with Bonnie and Elena.

"Bonnie and I were going to the Grill later. Do you want to come?" Elena offered Caroline.

"As much as I would love to, I can't. I'm so behind on homework, I swear it'll take a century to finish it." _Good thing I have an eternity_, she thought.

Before Elena or Bonnie could respond, they were interrupted by the ever-cocky Tyler Lockwood. He approached the girls arrogantly, planting himself right in front of Caroline.

"Hello, Caroline," he drawled.

She rolled her eyes as she greeted him. "Tyler."

If Tyler was aware that his presence annoyed her, he chose to ignore it. "I was wondering if maybe you wanted to meet me at the Grill later. If it gets boring, we could always slip out and find somewhere more...private." He raised his eyebrows suggestively and snaked his arm around her shoulders.  
Caroline scoffed and shrugged away from him, folding her arms over her chest. "No thanks. I'm busy."

Tyler's face twisted into a frown, but he recovered quickly. "How about tomorrow?"

"Still busy."

"The day after?"

"I'm busy pretty much every day, so..." Caroline trailed off, hoping he'd get the hint that she wasn't interested. Tyler Lockwood was an self absorbed jock with no regard for anyone other than himself. He wasn't exactly the most ideal company.

Tyler glanced from Bonnie to Elena, obviously embarrassed from Caroline's public rejection. He shrugged it off and gave Caroline a half smirk. "Then I guess I'll see you at school." He turned around and walked away.

Once he was well out of earshot, Bonnie smacked Caroline's arm lightly. "He was totally hitting on you and you just blew him off!"

Caroline winced and rubbed her arm, pretending like Bonnie's hit hurt more than it actually did. "There's no need to get violent over it."

"But you're single and he's really hot," Elena said, stating the obvious. "You can let yourself have a little fun, you know."

"Not with someone like that."

Bonnie and Elena rolled their eyes simultaneously. "See you in class tomorrow," Bonnie said before taking off with Elena in the direction of her car.

-xxx-

When Caroline arrived home, she saw a familiar silver vehicle sitting in her driveway. Her face lit up in excitement as she fumbled with her keys, unlocking the front door and stepping inside. She tossed her bag on the table in the foyer and ran into her living room.

"Dad!" she squealed as she raced forward to hug her father.

Bill squeezed her back, smoothing down her hair. "Hi, sweetie. How have you been?"

"Great! Why are you here?" Caroline was grinning as she pulled away.

"I was near town for a business meeting and thought I'd stop by to see you. I have to leave early tomorrow, though."

Caroline's smile fell slightly. "You're leaving tomorrow?"

"I'm afraid so."

Caroline was quiet for a moment before her face brightened up again. "Well, you at least have to stay for dinner."

-xxx-

After saying his goodbyes to his daughter the next morning, Bill set out for home. He'd driven through the woods that led to the highway countless times, but this morning it was extraordinarily foggy. He drove slowly and carefully down the deserted road.

After a while, he looked at the gas and realized he was running on E. The nearest gas station was only a few miles away, so he reached into his pocket to get his credit card out.

"Shit," he muttered under his breath. He left his wallet at Liz's and he didn't have enough gas to go back. With a frustrated sigh, Bill used the last bit of fuel he had to pull over to the side of the road.

He pulled out his phone. No signal.

He laughed a little breathlessly. This was just like a scene from a horror film. He decided to get out of the car and wander a little bit to see if he would come across a person or a house or some sign of civilization.

The morning air was freezing, and the wind bit at his cheeks. Bill rubbed his hands together in hopes of bringing some warmth into them as he continued his trek through the woods. The amount of fog that surrounded him was actually kind of ridiculous.

Suddenly, Bill could make out the outline of something in the distance. It looked like a small house. He broke out into a run, rushing towards what turned out to be not a small house, but a huge one. Huge was an understatement. The place was _enormous_.

Bill pushed through the iron gates that surrounded the mansion and climbed the steps that led to the front door. He raised the horseshoe handle and banged it against the door three times before bringing his hands together and rubbing warmth into them again.

Bill had barely stood outside for more than a minute when the giant oak door creaked open, and he was met with a very sophisticated-looking man. He stared at Bill emotionlessly.

"Can I help you?" the man asked.

"My car ran out of gas about a mile out from here and my phone doesn't have a signal. I was wondering if you might have a landline I could use to call the tow?" He smiled genuinely to show that he wasn't a serial killer.

The man stepped aside and gestured for Bill to enter. "I'm Elijah," the man told Bill as he crossed the threshold.

"Bill," he introduced himself as Elijah guided him through the hallway and down a spiral staircase that led to another dark hallway that was only lit by candles on the wall. After a moment of silence, he spoke up again. "Thank you for letting me use your phone."

Elijah didn't say anything. Instead, he stopped and turned around, looking at Bill sadly. The candles cast strange shadows on his handsome face, making him seem more intimidating. Bill felt his stomach twist uncomfortably.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

Before Elijah could answer, Bill saw another man appear beside him. "Ooh, look. Elijah's brought a snack," the man purred in a thick British accent.

"Don't be mean, Kol," a female voice scolded. A blonde woman walked up from behind Bill, grabbing him by the arm. He tried to twist out of her grip, but she was inhumanly strong. She placed her lips by his neck, and her breath sent chills down his spine. "Don't be afraid," she whispered, but her tone had no trace of reassurance.

Kol flashed in front of Bill, smirking. "Didn't anyone ever teach you to share, Bekah?"

"Enough," Elijah said calmly. "Open the door, Rebekah."

The woman named Rebekah sighed loudly and moved into the shadows. Bill heard the jingling of keys and the sound of a cell door opening. Suddenly, Kol grabbed the back of his neck and shoved him in the room. It was too dark to see anything, but Bill could tell that the room was extraordinarily small. He tried to run out of the cell before they closed the door, but it was too late. His hands only found concrete. He moved his hands up a little bit and grasped at the barred window.

"HELP!" he cried. "HELP!"

Bill could hear snickering, but Elijah's voice drowned it out. "It's no use. No one can hear you."

"What are you going to do to me?"

"It's obvious, isn't it?" came a new voice, more chilling than all the others combined. Elijah, Kol, and Rebekah turned to face the owner of the voice. As Bill's eyes adjusted to the darkness, he could make out the face of the man. His hair was light, and his eyes were bright blue. He stepped closer, stopping just in front of the cell. "We're going to kill you."

-xxx-

**A/N: I know that was a short first chapter, I'm sorry! There will be lots of Klaroline goodness to come if you think I should continue. Please review and tell me what you think so far! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Perhaps one day, in a year, or maybe even a century...I'll own TVD and all its characters. But that day is not today.**

**A/N: Hi, everyone! Thank you so much for following and reviewing this story! It means so much to me! I just wanted to add that Tyler may seem really OOC, but I'm trying to make him human!Tyler 2.0, so he's going to be really arrogant and annoying like Gaston. Enjoy this chapter :)**

-xxx-

Something was wrong. Something was terribly, terribly wrong and Caroline had to find out what it was. She had called her dad thirty times to tell him that he left his wallet behind, but he hadn't answered. If there's one thing she knew about Bill, it was that he was never too far from his phone.

She tried calling again, but it sent her straight to voicemail. "Dad, I'm getting really worried. Please, please, _please _call me back!"

Caroline stood there in her living room for a few minutes, tapping her phone against her leg as she decided what she would do. With a sigh, she grabbed her keys and her purse and made for the door, pulling it open just in time for Tyler Lockwood to appear, blocking her exit.

Caroline sighed frustratedly. "What are you doing here Tyler?"

Tyler smirked, taking a step forward and causing Caroline to take a step backward. "I came to ask you to dinner tonight."

He kept moving towards her, and she kept backing up. 'Sorry, Tyler, but I—"

"I'm not taking no for an answer."

Caroline's back hit the wall behind her, and Tyler trapped her by placing both his hands on the wall on each side of her head. She looked him sternly in the eye and cocked her jaw.

"Well, you're going to have to, because I'm not going."

Tyler sighed and he lowered his gaze. "I'm not proposing here, I just want you to go to dinner with me." He leaned down a little, his lips a breath away from hers. "Please," he whispered.

Caroline scoffed and shoved his chest roughly, sending him back a few feet. "That may work on other girls, but it certainly won't work on me. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have somewhere else to be."

Tyler rolled his eyes. "Where could you possibly be going that's better than going to dinner with me?"

Caroline didn't answer. Instead, she moved toward the front door and opened it, gesturing for Tyler to leave. He stared at her disbelievingly for a second before storming out of the house. Caroline followed after him, hopping into her car and pulling out of the driveway.

"Okay, Dad," she mumbled under her breath as she drove in the direction her father had left. "Where could you be?"

-xxx-

Caroline had been driving for some time when the roads became too clouded with fog for her to continue on safely. She pulled off to the side, banging her hands on the steering wheel in aggravation. She unbuckled her seatbelt and slipped out of the vehicle.

_I'll just go the rest of the way on foot_, she thought. She couldn't help but feel a little afraid. After all, night was falling and she was walking along the edge of the woods by herself. _Don't be stupid_, she told herself. _You're a vampire, you'll be fine_.

To a human, the night air might seem freezing, but not to her. She hoped Bill wasn't outside in this weather. She knew she could just be overreacting, and there could be a great reason why her dad hadn't answered any of her calls the whole day, but deep down she could feel that something terrible had happened and she needed to find him as soon as possible.

As she walked further, she came across another car that was pulled onto the side of the road, and she recognized it as her father's. There didn't appear to be any sign of damage on the vehicle, and no one was inside.

Caroline used her heightened senses to catch her dad's scent. It seemed as if he had travelled into the woods, so she took off at vampire speed, trailing the scent. It was faint, but it was enough to lead her to wherever her father was going.

She had been running for about a mile before she came across an iron gate that wrapped around the largest estate Caroline had ever seen in her entire life. It was breathtaking, even with all the fog swirling around it.

Hesitantly, Caroline opened the gate and took measured steps toward the front door. She had to admit that, even though she was invincible, she was afraid. This place would give anyone the creeps.

Before knocking on the door and announcing her arrival, Caroline decided to test something out. She wrapped her hand around the door handle and pushed it open quietly. She placed one foot over the threshold and then the other, closing the door behind her just as quietly as she had opened it.

If she were able to enter the house without an invitation, then that meant the house was owned by vampires.

_Oh no_, she thought. That also meant that whatever was happening to her father was worse than she thought, and if she was going to save him, she would need to be extra quiet.

Caroline tiptoed through the mansion, picking up on several different scents, one of which was her father's. She focused on that specific one and followed it through a long hallway and down a spiral staircase that led to what seemed like a dungeon or basement.

There were several candles and torches on the walls that dimly lit the cold hallway in the basement, but it wasn't enough light for a human to be able to see where they were going. Caroline, however, could see through the darkness, and she saw that there were cells lined up along to wall to her right as if it were a jail. The doors were cement, but there was a small barred window in each of them.

Caroline could hear the slow, steady breathing of a person in one of the cells. She could tell that whoever it was, was asleep, and it was most likely Bill. She rushed towards the cell and grabbed at the bars on the tiny window.

"Dad," she whispered, glancing around her to make sure none of the owners of the house were near. "Dad, she whispered again, more loudly this time.

Bill's eyes fluttered, and he gazed above him at his daughter. The flames from the torches behind her shone off her blonde hair, making it look like there was ring of light surrounding her. "Caroline," he mumbled, pushing himself up. "You need to get out of here."

Caroline shook her head vehemently. "No, not until—"

She was cut off when she felt a hand around her throat, and suddenly she was being pinned against the wall. She could hear her father yelling her name, but she was focused on the blonde woman in front of her.

"Well, well, well," the woman said, her pink lips curling up at the edges in a sickening smile. "Look what we have here. Come to save your father?" Her voice was heavy with a British accent.

Caroline glared at the blonde. "Let him go," she demanded.

Suddenly, she could feel the grip around her throat tighten as she was lifted off the ground. Her feet dangled, and she tried kicking at the woman but it was no use. She tried pleading with her, but all that came out were choking noises that sounded like a wounded animal.

"Stop playing with your food, Rebekah. It isn't ladylike," came a different voice. Male, this time, but still with the same accent. The man it belonged to was extremely handsome. His hair shone golden in the light, and his blue eyes were dancing with amusement. All traces of humor were wiped from his face when he saw the girl being held by the throat. "You're not human," he realized.

Caroline didn't answer, and Rebekah loosened her grip the tiniest bit.

"Let the girl go," the golden haired man commanded after a minute of silence.

Rebekah complied, watching Caroline closely as if she might make a break for it, but she knew better than to run. And there was no way in hell she was leaving without her father.

"Why are you here, love?" the man asked.

Caroline grimaced at his nickname. "I'm here for my father."

Rebekah chuckled once. "Do you really think we'll just hand him over?"

The man with blue eyes held up his hand to silence her. "If that's what you came here for, then you've wasted your time. Now I suggest you leave before you do anything foolish." He turned to leave, and Rebekah began to follow him, but Caroline's voice stopped them both.

"No, wait! I'll take his place!" They both turned to face her, their expressions incredulous. Caroline took a deep breath. "If you let him go, you can have me."

Rebekah laughed. "And what would we do with you?"

"Rebekah," he growled, and Rebekah shut up. He glared at Caroline. "You'd be willing to stay here forever in order to free your father?"

Caroline nodded. "Yes." She was vaguely aware of Bill screaming out his protests behind her, but she wasn't paying him any mind.

"Fine," the man agreed. "Rebekah, let the girl's father go."

"What?! She's useless! What are we going to do with her? If we let this one go, then who knows how long we'll have to wait until another human comes wandering around! I don't want to have to keep eating bunnies, Nik!"

"Relax, Bekah. I know what I'm doing," Nik told her.

"And I'm supposed to blindly trust your judgement?"

"Do me a favor and compel this man to leave and to never speak of this place to anyone."

Rebekah let out a frustrated sigh and, with a roll of her eyes, grabbed Bill from his cell and walked off. He was struggling against her grasp, calling out Caroline's name over and over again.

Caroline glared at Nik, who was watching her curiously. "You couldn't have let me say goodbye?"

Nik ignored her. "Follow me," he said simply. He spun around and took off in the same direction Rebekah had just left in, Caroline following closely behind.

As they made their way out of the basement, up the grand staircase, and down a hallway towards the bedroom she'd be staying in, everything began to sink in. Silent tears streamed down her face, and she didn't bother wiping them away.

"Feel free to roam the house as you please, but the West wing is off limits," Nik said emotionlessly.

"What's in the—"

"No questions."

Caroline stopped where she was and crossed her arms over her chest. Nik stopped too, and turned to face her. "If I'm going to be imprisoned here for the rest of eternity, I've at least earned the right to ask questions, _Nik_."

Suddenly, Caroline felt hands at her throat again, only this time they were Nik's. She grabbed his wrist and tried to pry him off her, but he was a hundred times stronger than she was. As if that weren't terrifying enough, his beautiful cerulean eyes had turned yellow, and she could see the blood rush under them. Caroline let out a small shriek. He wasn't like any other vampire she'd encountered.

_What is he?_

"You will _not_ call me that. I am _not_ 'Nik' to you. _You_ will call me Klaus, am I clear?" he growled menacingly.

Caroline nodded, tears squeezing out of the corners of her eyes. When Klaus dropped her to the ground, she clutched her throat and scrambled away from him. He stared down at her without sympathy for a moment before turning around and sauntering over to the end of the hall, where he opened the door to her new room.

Caroline stood up and brushed herself off, keeping her head lowered as she walked past Klaus and into her bedroom. She stood with her back facing him, new tears rolling down her cheeks.  
"I expect you in the dining hall in an hour for dinner. You need to get properly acquainted with the others," Klaus told her.

"No," Caroline refused, her tone defiant. She almost expected Klaus to lash out at her again, but he remained calm.

"It wasn't a request."

With that, he slammed her door shut and left her alone.

-xxx-

"You _what_?!" Kol yelled.

The Originals were all seated at the dining table, discussing the recent events. Klaus was sitting at the head of the table with Rebekah to his right and Elijah to his left. Finn was on the other side of Elijah, and Kol was on the other side of Rebekah.

"He was the first human to come around here in months, and you just let him go?" Kol continued, his features contorted in rage.

"Oh, hush, Kol. Don't be angry because an innocent human was spared from becoming your chew toy," Finn spoke up, giving his brother a pointed look.

"So now I'm supposed to adopt your silly little morals?" Kol retorted.

"Shut it, you two," Rebekah ordered.

"Do any of you realize what this could mean?" Elijah asked thoughtfully. When his siblings respond with blank stares, he continued. "This girl could be the key to breaking the curse."

All the heads at the table turned in Klaus's direction. The hybrid leaned back in his chair, folding his hands on the table in front of him.

Rebekah's lips stretched into a grin. "We could get out of here."

Klaus shook his head. "It's not going to happen. Someone like her wouldn't ever fall for someone like me."

"How can you be so sure? Do you even know what kind of girl she is?" Rebekah asked. Klaus didn't answer. "You should get to know her, and let her get to know you."

"Thank you, Rebekah, for that outstanding piece of advice," Klaus replied sarcastically.

"Come on, Nik," Kol chimed in. "At least try. You owe us that much."

Klaus glared at his younger brother. "I owe you nothing."

"We wouldn't be in this mess if you hadn't decided to massacre an entire village right under Mother's nose."

Elijah brought his hand down on the table. It landed with a resounding _thud_, causing everyone to quiet down. "Arguing will get us nowhere." He clenched his jaw and turned to Klaus, maintaining his calm. "In a few months, the rose will expire and we'll be trapped here forever. Unless you can make that girl fall in love with you."

Klaus cast his eyes down, sitting in thoughtful silence for a moment. "Alright," he agreed reluctantly.

Rebekah clapped her hands together delightedly. "I'll go fetch her for dinner."

-xxx-

**A/N: What do you all think so far? Do you guys like the Original siblings together? Should I keep going? Your feedback is what keeps me motivated! :D**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I own a computer and an intense love for Klaroline, but unfortunately I do not own TVD or any of its characters.**

**A/N: Thank you _SO_ much to everyone who reviewed and added this story to their alerts or favorites! You have no idea how much each review/follow means to me! :) I just want to teleport through the computer and give you all giant hugs and a plate of cookies! I hope you enjoy this chapter :)**

-xxx-

Caroline had been sitting in her room for the past hour, sobbing into her pillow. As if becoming a vampire weren't bad enough, now she was forced to live out her eternity in this house with a man who both confused her and terrified her.

What kind of monster was he? She knew he was a vampire. Or, there was a part of him that was a vampire. She'd never met one quite like him. She recalled how his azure eyes turned a deadly yellow as he attacked her. The memory sent a chill down her spine.

_What could he be?_ she thought for what seemed like the thousandth time in the last hour.

Caroline's musings were interrupted by a knock at her door. She stood quickly, wiping her eyes as she called, "Who is it?"

"It's Rebekah."

Caroline was about to tell her to go away, but Rebekah's voice was gentle enough that she knew she wasn't there to hurt her. She padded over to the door and cracked it open slightly, only revealing part of her face. "What do you want?" she asked.

Rebekah gestured towards the partially opened door. "May I come in?"

With a sigh, Caroline pulled the door wider, allowing Rebekah to step through and shut it behind her.

"I came to apologize for my behavior earlier," the blonde Original said, an apologetic smile tugging at her lips.

Caroline nodded and stared at the ground without saying anything. She wasn't feeling particularly forgiving today.

Rebekah sighed, her smile fading. "I'd also like to apologize on behalf of my brother." Caroline's head snapped up at the word _brother_. "Yes, Nik's my brother. So is Kol, Finn, and Elijah."

Caroline's jaw dropped. "There are more of you?"

Rebekah chuckled. "You say that with a surprising amount of fear, Caroline. That's your name, right? It's what your father was calling you."

Caroline didn't answer, feeling new tears pinch her eyes at the mention of her father. Instead, she crossed her arms over her chest and raised her eyebrows. "Well, if your brother was really sorry, he would tell me himself."

"Why don't you let him tell you at dinner?"

"I'm not going to dinner."

"Oh, come on, Caroline! If you're going to live in this house for the rest of your life, you might as well get to know the people you're sharing it with."

"Get to know the people who planned on killing my father and imprisoned me instead?" Caroline scoffed. "No thanks."

Rebekah heaved another sigh. "Suit yourself. But if you change your mind, there's food in the kitchen." She turned for the door and closed it behind her, leaving Caroline alone again.

-xxx-

Klaus was standing in the dining room, waiting on his sister to return with Caroline. When Rebekah walked in without the blonde baby vampire, he raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Is something holding her up?"

Rebekah shrugged as if nothing were wrong, but her eyes gave away her concern. "She's not coming," she announced.

Klaus's expression darkened. "She _what?!_" He started out of the room, but Rebekah flashed in front of him, grabbing him by the shoulders.

"Don't, Nik," she warned. "Don't lose your temper."

"You're one to talk," Klaus growled, glaring at his sister. "Your temper is worse than mine."

Rebekah ignored his dig. "Don't scare the girl away! You've done enough damage as it is."

Klaus wasn't listening to his sister. Instead, he brushed past her and raced up the grand staircase and down the hall that led to Caroline's room. He pounded his fist on the door so hard, he was surprised it didn't break down.

"Go away!" Caroline shouted through the closed door.

"I told you to be at dinner!"

"I'm not hungry!"

"Stop acting childish!"

"_You're_ the one acting childish!"

Klaus wanted to burst in there and put the little blonde in her place, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He glared into the eyes of his sister.

"Be a gentleman," Rebekah told him sternly.

Klaus took a deep breath and regained his composure before speaking again. "Please join us for dinner," he asked politely.

"No, thank you," Caroline replied.

"Fine," Klaus said angrily. "Then don't eat at all."

He stormed off at supernatural speed to a place where he could think. He raced to the other end of the house, into the West wing. He pushed open the doors to one of the rooms forcefully and started trashing the place. He flipped tables, knocked over vases, and broke everything in sight. He knew he would regret it later when he had to clean up the mess, but he had to get his frustration out.

Klaus knew he could've taken it out on the source of his anger, but the thought of hurting the girl bothered him. He didn't like the idea of her being hurt in general, whether it was by his doing or not.

And that fact frustrated the hell out of him. He broke off the leg of a table and threw it at the wall with enough force that it stuck.

Suddenly, something caught Klaus's eye. It was the enchanted rose that was sitting in a glass vase he hadn't smashed yet. Another petal had wilted, signaling that his time was wasting away.

Klaus covered his face with his hands, fed up with the girl and breaking the curse, and being stuck in this house. Ever leaving this place was becoming less of a reality every single day.

-xxx-

It was almost midnight, and Caroline was still wide awake. She contemplated getting out of bed and going down to the kitchen for a snack, but she didn't want to face the wrath of Klaus should he find her there.

But damn it, she was hungry, and she was going to eat something!

Caroline swung her legs over the side of her bed and stood up, quietly pulling open her door and slipping out into the hallway. She tiptoed down the hall and towards the grand staircase, pausing to glance around and make sure no one was near before taking small, hesitant steps down the stairs. When she reached the bottom without making a sound, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Going somewhere?" she heard someone ask behind her.

With a start, Caroline jumped around, her hands held up in defense.

The unfamiliar man chuckled lightly. "I'm Kol," he introduced himself, taking her hand and pressing his lips to her knuckles playfully.

Caroline smiled, although her eyes still looked nervous. "Caroline. Nice to meet you." She paused for a second. "I was just... I wanted to..."

Kol gave her a knowing smile. "You were hungry."

Caroline nodded.

"Follow me," Kol said, guiding Caroline towards the kitchens. "We only have animal blood since humans don't usually wander this far into the woods, but—"

"Do you have any real food?" Caroline interrupted.

Kol chuckled as they entered the kitchen. He pointed to the cupboards and said, "Help yourself. We have plenty left over from the dinner you didn't attend."

Caroline clenched her jaw. "Well, I didn't want to be around your brother," she said honestly. Kol seemed to be more lighthearted than his other siblings that she'd met, so she felt like she could tell him this without him getting upset. "He didn't exactly make me feel welcome."

Kol smirked. "Nik's not always so sour. He used to be more fun."

"Really?" Caroline asked incredulously. "That seems hard to believe."

"Well, being stuck in the same place for two decades can really put a damper on your mood."

Caroline didn't know what to say. What did he mean they were _stuck_ in this place? Instead of answering, she opened the cupboards and surveyed her options before deciding that nothing appealed to her in there. She moved to the fridge and searched for something appetizing, finally settling on a fancy looking pasta dish.

"This looks good," she mumbled as she put it in the microwave to heat it up.

"Want something to drink?" Kol asked as he stepped around the counter. "We have water, if you want. Or coffee."

"I shouldn't have coffee. I actually want to get to sleep tonight."

"Wine then," Kol said resolutely, pulling out two glasses and a bottle of red wine.

Caroline turned to take her dinner out of the microwave, and when she spun back around to face Kol, she saw that he had a bottle of blood that he was lacing the wine with.

"What are you doing?" she gasped.

Kol rolled his eyes. "Relax. You need to get some blood in you."

"I don't want it."

"You aren't trying to desiccate yourself, are you?"

Caroline crossed her arms over her chest in defiance before sighing and giving in. "Fine. As long as no one was killed for it."

"I already told you, humans rarely come around here."

Caroline paused before speaking as Kol handed her the drink. She took a sip, and the bitter taste of animal blood made her cringe. It was a good thing the flavor of the wine covered it up mostly, because she didn't think she could drink it straight.

"Why don't you just go snatch a few blood bags from the hospital?" Caroline suggested as she leaned against the counter and took a bite of her food.

Kol opened his mouth to answer, but then closed it as if he weren't sure he should say anything. He opened it again, but before he could get any words out, he was interrupted by Rebekah's entrance.

"Nik won't be happy about this," the blonde Original said, coming to stand beside Caroline and folding her arms over her chest.

Kol grinned. "Ah, sister, come to join the party?"

Rebekah sighed and uncrossed her arms. "No, actually. I came to bring some food to Caroline, but it seems she's already got some." She glanced at Caroline, who smiled sheepishly as she took another bite.

"Sorry," Caroline apologized. A second later, she added, "You aren't going to tell Klaus, right?"

"He's really not that bad," Rebekah said. "Once you get to know him, you'll realize that he isn't as scary as he likes people to think he is."

"Still, I don't want him to be any angrier with me."

"He has no right to be angry with you. But if it makes you feel better, I won't tell him."

"It'll be our little secret," Kol agreed, winking at Caroline.

Caroline giggled, deciding that she liked Kol and Rebekah. They made her feel safe and welcome, which was more than she could say for Klaus. If she was going to be stuck here for the rest of her existence, it was good to have people with whom she could be friends.

Caroline finished up her dinner and walked over to the sink to wash up.. "I never got a chance to look around yet, but from what I've seen so far, this place is amazing! I feel like I'm in a castle," she said as she scrubbed her dishes.

"Kol nudged her gently. "You don't have to clean up, you're our guest! Leave it to Finn, he's always complaining that there's nothing to do around here. Come on. Bekah and I will show you around the house."

"Is that really a good idea, Kol?" Rebekah asked hesitantly. "If Nik hears us—"

"What is he going to do, Bekah? Kill us?" Kol laughed and grabbed Caroline's arm, tugging her along with him. "I'm going to show her around, you're welcome to come with us."

Rebekah stood back for a second, watching Kol guide Caroline away before before deciding, _why the hell not_, and following after them.

Kol dropped Caroline's arm once they were in the main hallway. They wandered all the way to the end, with Kol and Rebekah pointing out things along the way.

"In that door there is a linen closet, and if you go through here, it's another entrance to the kitchens," they said.

Caroline trailed after them, looking at all the ornate paintings that hung on the walls and taking care to smell the flowers they kept around in vases. They passed the grand staircase on their way back, and started down another hallway that had another set of stairs.

"What's up there?" she asked curiously.

Rebekah and Kol gave each other a look. "Nothing," Rebekah said. "It's just the West wing."

Caroline began walking towards the stairs, taking only a few steps before Rebekah and Kol flashed in front of her, stopping her. She crossed her arms over her chest in annoyance.

"You can't go up there," Kol told her, suddenly serious.

"Why not?"

"You just can't," Rebekah said. After a few moments, her face lightened up and she began smiling again. "Come, I want to show you the gardens." She grabbed her hand and led her away, but Caroline's mind wasn't on how beautiful and colorful the gardens were (even though she was sure they were even more amazing in daylight), or how brightly the full moon was shining, because now her curiosity about the West wing was too intense to ignore.

-xxx-

After Kol and Rebekah had left Caroline to go to bed, she snuck out again to head to the West wing. She hadn't slept all night and it was almost morning, but she didn't let her exhaustion get in the way of her finding out what they were hiding.

She raced at supernatural speed to the West stairwell, being as silent as possible. She didn't want to run into anybody else. Going to the kitchens was a risk, and it was okay that she got caught, but getting caught snooping was even more daring.

She climbed the stairs quickly and quietly, checking around her again to make sure no one was near before continuing towards the double doors at the end of the hall. She placed her hand on the handle, taking a deep breath and listening for anyone approaching before pushing it open gently.

She released a breath when the door opened without creaking, and she slid inside without a sound. The room was a disaster. Everything was broken. All the mirrors were cracked, the vases were shattered, the tables were flipped, and there were dents in the wall. It looked like a tornado had ripped through here, damaging everything in its path except for one thing on the other side of the room that caught Caroline's attention.

Caroline walked towards the only table that remained intact, with a single rose resting in a vase atop it. The flower almost seemed as if it were glowing, and the petals looked like they were wilting. Even though it was almost dead, it was strangely the most beautiful rose Caroline had ever seen in her entire life.

"Well, look what we have here."

Caroline whirled around and gasped as she saw Klaus standing in the doorframe, his expression dark. He looked more frightening than she had ever seen him before, and she thought she had seen the worst of him.

"It seems I need to teach you how to listen to directions."

-xxx-

**A/N: Uh-oh. Angry Klaus is a scary Klaus. What is he gonna do? Sorry to leave you like that! Also, I'm sorry for the lack of Klaroline. There will be _lots_ to look forward to next chapter if you're picking up what I'm putting down ;) What do you think will happen? I'd love to hear your predictions and your thoughts on this chapter :D Thank you so much for reading and reviewing! You guys make writing this worth it!  
**

**P.S. I don't usually post anything about my fics on there because it's a humor blog (this site is where I can be serious about my ships), but if you wanted to follow me on Tumblr my URL is _funny-tvd-things_. Yes, I know, shameless self promotion ;) I just wanted you guys to know if you wanted to come fangirl with me over Klaroline since it's easier (at least IMO) to talk on there as opposed to PM'ing on here.  
**

**Much love,  
Morgan  
**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Great news! I finally own TVD and all of its characters! It's all mine! All of it! *heavy sarcasm, obviously***

**A/N: THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR YOUR REVIEWS! I love you all so much, it should be illegal :D I literally fangirl over every single review/message I get! You guys are wonderful, thank you so much! I really hope you like this chapter and all the Klaroline goodness ;) Sorry this is kind of a short chapter.**

-xxx-

Klaus lunged for her, but Caroline darted out of his path before he could grab her. She paused, not entirely sure what to do, and that was all the time Klaus needed to grab her by her arms, pinning them down at her side and slamming her into the wall.

"I TOLD YOU TO NEVER GO IN HERE!" he yelled at her, his face inches from hers.

Caroline flinched back, terrified. "Please," she whispered. "I wasn't going to do anything—"

Before she could get her sentence out, Klaus had let go of her arms only to smack both hands against the wall on either side of her head. She gasped, and her ears began to ring.

Klaus was glaring at her. He didn't want to touch her for fear of hurting her, but he was so beyond angry that trying to contain himself was nearly impossible.

Caroline watched as almost every emotion played across his features, Pure fury, frustration, indecision, and she didn't even get to see his face after that because she ducked under his arm and rushed towards the door.

Caroline had enough of this. She couldn't live like this forever. All she wanted was to run away.

A lightbulb went off in her head.

_Now's my chance_, she thought hastily as she flashed out of the room and away from Klaus without wasting another second. She raced down the stairwell and towards the front door. It wasn't until she was outside that she realized Klaus wasn't chasing after her.

She didn't have much time to think about why he wasn't following her. What mattered was the fact that she had to get away from there before he decided to come after her. She continued to speed away from the mansion, glancing back to see it grow smaller and smaller until—

_Smack_.

Of course her attention would be elsewhere instead of on the giant tree that was in front of her. She crashed into it and landed on the ground with a "_humph_." She rubbed her forehead, and when she pulled her hand away it was covered in blood. She wasn't concerned about the damage it did because the healing process was already triggered.

Oh, the benefits of being supernatural.

Suddenly, she heard a howling in the distance. Her undead heart seemed to stop beating, and then picked back up at an unnatural pace. She remembered noticing the full moon earlier when she was in the gardens with Kol and Rebekah, but she didn't think much of it. Now, when she looked up the the moon hanging in the sky, it seemed to almost mock her.

She was still sitting on the ground when something knocked her back, and then she was staring into the yellow eyes of a...

She gulped.

...werewolf.

Its teeth were bared, and she turned her face to the side as it growled at her. She tried to knock it off of her and roll out from underneath it, but it just tackled her again. It was nipping at her, and she was making futile attempts at dodging its deadly bite.

The wolf sunk its teeth into her shoulder, and she let out a bloodcurdling scream that could probably shatter glass if she was near any.

Tears rolled down her cheeks as the werewolf was suddenly pulled off of her, its teeth ripping at her flesh.

Caroline watched as Klaus wrapped his hand around the animal's muzzle and yanked its head to the side. The movement made a sickening _crack_, and the wolf dropped dead at his feet.

Caroline's vision ebbed, and she began seeing black spots. The pain in her shoulder was overwhelming, and she could feel herself slipping away. The last thing she saw was Klaus's concerned blue eyes before she blacked out.

-xxx-

Bill sat in the living room of his ex-wife's house on a couch directly across from her. He was clearly shaken, and Liz had just handed him some coffee before taking a seat on the sofa opposite him.

Bill explained the whole thing to her. How he had come across a house and asked to use their phone, how he discovered they were vampires when they locked him up and planned to use him as a human blood bag, how Caroline had come to his rescue, volunteering to take his place as prisoner, and how the woman named Rebekah had compelled him to leave and never speak of it.

"Then how are you telling me about this now?" Liz asked.

"I'm impervious to compulsion. The mind is a powerful tool, Liz. I've trained it to resist being manipulated."

"That's impossible."

"Fine, don't believe me. But believe this. There are vampires who are much older and dangerous than anything I've encountered, holding our daughter captive. And we need to get her out of there before they kill her."

Liz shook her head, her face scrunching up as she resisted the urge to cry. Bill leaned forward and took her hands in his, looking her firmly in the eye.

"You need to get the council together so we can take these vampires down."

"Bill, you don't understand. If the council finds out that...that..." Liz struggled for a moment before finally deciding to tell the truth. "If the council finds out that Caroline's a vampire, they'll kill her too."

Bill dropped her hands, and his face crumpled in pain. His daughter, his little girl, turned into the thing he hated most in the world. The very thing he had grown up learning to kill. He knew he had to kill her, he just knew it, it was how he was raised. But the thought caused a physical ache in his chest.

But he wouldn't. He couldn't. If he could get her out of there alive, he could teach her to control her bloodlust. He could help her. For now, though, he just needed Liz to trust him.

"We can deal with that later. But right now all that matters is that she gets out of there alive, and I'm going to find her whether the council is involved or not."

-xxx-

Caroline woke up in her bed. Well, not _her_ bed, but the one in the room she's been staying in at the mansion. She groaned as she recalled the werewolf attack. She tried to raise her hands to rub her eyes, but her shoulder protested.

"Ow," she whimpered, fresh tears streaking her face.

"That looks like it hurts."

Caroline's head whipped to her left, where Klaus was sitting in an armchair by the window. Her initial reaction was fear when she saw him, but then she relaxed a little when she remembered how he saved her from the wolf.

"What are you doing here?" she asked tiredly. If she was going to die, she didn't want to spend her last moments with _Klaus_ of all people.

Klaus looked at the ground, his eyes sad, and if Caroline didn't know any better, she would think he was hurt that she asked.

"You were bitten by a werewolf. If you aren't healed, you'll be dead by tomorrow."

"I'm well aware of what a werewolf bite does, thank you," Caroline replied angrily. A second later she added, more softly, "Sorry."

Klaus chuckled, standing up and walking towards her slowly. "Don't apologize. You're suffering from a werewolf bite. It's bound to make you irritable." He took a seat on the edge of her bed.

"Why did you save me?" Caroline asked.

Klaus gazed out her window. It was nightfall, which meant Caroline had been passed out the entire day. He was quiet for a minute before he spoke. "I don't know," he told her honestly.

They sat in thoughtful silence for a while. Klaus was still staring out the window at the night sky, and Caroline was staring at him. She had seen another side of him today when he saved her, the side that Rebekah and Kol had told her about. It made her view him with different eyes.

When he turned to look at her, his eyes were the bluest she'd ever seen them. For some reason, that thought made her blush, and she squirmed under his scrutiny.

"We need to get you healed," Klaus said.

Caroline chuckled once without humor. "Yeah, if only there were a cure."

"There is."

Caroline tilted her head, confused. "Wh...what? What are you talking about? No there isn't."

His lips twitched as if he wanted to smile, but he sighed instead. "About that... I'm no ordinary vampire. You see, unlike the rest of my siblings, my father—my _real_ father—was a werewolf."

"So you're a hybrid? But that's impossible."

"Being a hybrid isn't the only thing that sets me apart. My family is the first generation of vampires. Most refer to as 'Originals.'"

Caroline's mouth fell open. "So that means you're, like, a billion years old."

This time Klaus didn't hide his smile. "More like a thousand, but you get the picture."

"What does this have to do with healing me?"

Instead of answering, Klaus rolled his sleeve back, exposing his wrist. He slid his other arm underneath Caroline to help her up. He cradled her against him so her back was against his chest, and he rested his chin on top of her head. Putting his arm close to her lips, he commanded, "Drink."

Caroline hesitated, unsure whether she was more overwhelmed that he was an Original and a hybrid, or that he was being, well, for lack of a better word, _kind_. She was still confused as she sunk her teeth into his wrist, letting the blood coat her parched throat.

Klaus's blood was quite an improvement from the animal blood Kol had given her earlier. Where the animal blood was bitter, Klaus's was sweet. She closed her eyes raised both her hands, latching onto his arm.

Caroline didn't know how long he let her drink. All she knew was that when he pulled his arm away, her thirst still wasn't sated. She frowned as she leaned forward, twisting around so she was facing him.

Klaus stared at her, fascinated with this little blonde. He was surprised when she stared evenly back at him. He had come to expect her to flinch away every time he looked at her, and for some reason, the fact that she could comfortably sit so close to him was...pleasant.

Caroline searched Klaus's eyes, looking for some hint that could lead her to the reason for his sudden change of behavior, but his features remained impassive. When he lifted his hand, her gaze flicked toward the movement, and she tensed. He wiped away some blood that had dripped onto her chin, and she glanced down in embarrassment.

Suddenly, Klaus's expression became conflicted. Before she could comment, he flashed out of her room, leaving her confused and alone.

Caroline looked at her shoulder, noticing that the wound was almost completely healed.

-xxx-

**A/N: Ah, Bill Forbes's special ability to resist mind compulsion. Remember that from 3x04? Hopefully it won't cause problems for our Originals. So what did you think of this chapter? Good? Bad? Loved the Klaroline moments? Hated the Klaroline moments? Awesome action sequence? Horrible action sequence? Somewhere in between? I need your feedback like I need TVD to come back from its hiatus! :) Also, constructive criticism is always welcomed! Tell me things that I can improve! *insert Loki screaming "TELL ME!" here* **

**As always, thank you for reading :) And if you wanted to come chat with me and fangirl with me over Klaroline, message me on Tumblr! (_funny-tvd-things_) Fair warning, I don't post much about my fics on there, but I love meeting new people who share the same love for Klaroline as I do :D  
**

**P.S. So far I've been getting a new chapter up every day, but I'm probably going to have to start spacing them out what with school starting tomorrow and my grandpa being in the hospital. I don't want you guys thinking I've abandoned this fic if I don't update every day :)  
**

**Love always,**

**Morgan**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: If I owned TVD and all its characters, Klaus and Caroline would've banged by now. Just sayin'. *shrug***

**A/N: I'm trying to think of a word to describe how wonderful all of you are, but no such word exists. I can't even coherently express how happy all your reviews make me! Thank you so much! And I'm sorry for the long wait. You guys have been so patient, thank you :) Also, this is kind of a filler chapter so it's a little short, but I'm going to try to get another chapter up _really_ soon to make up for it. Just bear with me!  
**

-xxx-

Caroline had fallen back asleep after Klaus had healed her, still not sure whether it had actually happened or if it was a hallucination. Part of her wished it was a dream. All of it. She wished she would wake up in her own bed in her own house. But another—very small—part of her wanted to stay. The Originals intrigued her.

Light streamed through Caroline's window, and her eyes fluttered open. With a sigh, she kicked her covers off of herself and checked her shoulder, pleased to find that it was good as new.

Caroline rolled out of bed and headed to the bathroom that was connected to her room for a much needed shower. She took her time rinsing off the past few days, carefully scrubbing off all the dirt and blood from the werewolf attack and the sheen of sweat that covered her from when she was suffering from the bite.

When she was done, she wrapped a towel around herself and slipped back into her room where a pair of jeans and a crimson blouse lay folded on the edge of her bed. She pulled the towel tighter around her as she glanced around nervously, but it appeared whoever had left her the clothes had disappeared already.

Caroline got dressed quickly and wandered downstairs into the living area. Rebekah and Kol were there, as well as two other Originals whom Caroline didn't recognize. One was dressed in a suit and the other was dressed more casually. They looked like they were having a deep discussion.

The one in the suit turned his attention toward Caroline and approached her when she made her entrance.

"You must be Caroline," he said. His accent wasn't as prominent as his siblings'. Caroline nodded. "I'm Elijah," the man introduced himself, taking her hand and placing a gentle kiss on her knuckles, much like Kol had, except more formal. When he pulled away, he gestured toward the other man Caroline hadn't recognized. "This is my brother, Finn." Elijah pointed towards Kol and Rebekah, who were now bickering on the couch. "And you've already met Rebekah and Kol."

They quit arguing and snapped their heads up at their names, both of them grinning at Caroline.

"Caroline," Rebekah greeted her. "I see you've found the clothes I left you."

Caroline smiled at her. "Thank you." She paused before adding, "Have you seen Klaus anywhere?"

Rebekah eyed her suspiciously. "Not since he told me about your almost-escape. Why?"

"Just wondering." She shrugged nonchalantly, and the Original went back to arguing with her brother. Caroline tried to occupy herself with a book or by wandering around aimlessly, but her thoughts kept straying towards Klaus and what he was up to.

-xxx-

Klaus sat at the desk in his study, sketching yet another drawing of Caroline. He needed to distract himself from thinking about her, but she kept making her way into his thoughts and into his sketches. It was irritating, to say the least.

He set down his pencil and pinched the bridge of his nose before pushing himself out of his chair and pacing back and forth.

_This is a good thing,_ he told himself. As soon as he lets himself care, the curse will be that much closer to being broken. But he'll also have a weakness, and the thing Klaus hated more than anything was feeling vulnerable. That's why he always needed to have the upper hand, and why he had always been on the outs with his father.

Klaus stopped pacing and went to stand by the window, looking out over the grounds of the estate. If Mikael ever found him in this place, he would be more vulnerable than ever. After all, he could venture no more than a mile away from this house. He was trapped. So maybe opening himself up to care wasn't such a bad thing if it meant breaking the curse that was holding him here.

Klaus was still looking out the window at the gardens when Caroline appeared. She wandered around idly, stopping to admire certain flowers every now and then. Even in a simple pair of jeans, she was stunning.

He wondered about her. What she was like before she came here, who her friends were, what was happening in her life, what her hopes were, and her dreams... He wanted to know all about her.

The first thing he noticed about the girl was her obvious beauty, of course. But her light fascinated him, and he admired her strength. She was much more than just her looks. He wanted to know the girl who would volunteer to live out the rest of eternity with him in place of her father.

Rebekah chose that moment to come knocking on the door. Instead of waiting for an answer, she opened it and stepped inside, shutting it behind her quietly.

With a sigh, Klaus turned his gaze from the window and said, "If you're just going to come in without waiting for an answer, what's the purpose of knocking?"

His sister walked towards him, running a finger along his desk and smiling faintly when she saw the sketch of Caroline he had been working on. "I just wanted to see how you were doing. I haven't seen you at all today," she replied, ignoring his question.

Klaus looked out the window again. "I didn't realize I had to check in with you every day."

"Don't be like that, Nik. Something's on your mind, I want to know what it is."

Klaus was silent.

"Is it Caroline?" Rebekah guessed.

More silence.

"You should do something for her," she suggested.

"Like what?" Klaus asked, still staring out the window, his mind barely in the conversation.

"Well, there's flowers, chocolates...promises you don't intend to keep."

Klaus finally turned to look at his sister, the ghost of a smile on his lips. "I know what I'll do."

-xxx-

Caroline found herself strolling through the gardens after a failed attempt at sitting down and reading. She just had to get up and move around and be somewhat active after her recent near-death experience. She just couldn't sit still for too long.

The roses were her favorite. There were more of them than any other flower in the gardens, and it seemed that they came in almost every color. Red, pink, yellow, white... However, none of them compared to the one she saw in the West wing.

She reached out to touch one of the yellow roses, wondering if anyone would be angry with her if she picked it and put it in a vase to set on her bedside table. The thought of it being the first thing she saw when she woke up made her smile.

"That's a nice one," Klaus said from behind her. "Though I prefer the red."

Caroline whirled around to face him. "Klaus," she greeted breathlessly. "What are you doing here?"

Klaus smirked. "Well I _do_ live here, love."

She laughed uncomfortably. "Right."

"I wanted to show you something."

Caroline tilted her head. "Okay," she replied hesitantly.

Klaus smiled briefly before turning around and walking back inside, Caroline following close behind.

-xxx-

They ended up in what looked like an art studio. Beautiful paintings hung on the walls and papers were scattered on a table in front of a giant canvas. It was one of the largest rooms Caroline had seen in the house so far.

"Wow," Caroline whispered as she moved closer to one of the landscapes. "Did you do these?"

Klaus leaned against the door frame, watching as Caroline stared at the paintings in awe. "Yes, actually."

Caroline glanced over at him, her eyebrows raised. "Impressive."

"Well, I have nothing better to do most days."

"You could go out," Caroline suggested. "I don't know why you all keep yourselves holed up in this house."

He paused before speaking. "It's complicated."

Caroline smiled slightly. "I can keep up."

Klaus was silent for a moment before pushing himself off the wall and moving next to her. "Another time," he promised.

Caroline wandered away from him to look at every piece of art that hung around the room. It was like she was in a museum. It was surprising how someone who seemed to enjoy disaster and destruction had such a talent for creating beauty. She was definitely surprised. Between Klaus saving her life and showing her something so personal, Caroline had begun to think that maybe her first impression of him was wrong. Maybe he wasn't such a bad guy.

"I never got a chance to thank you for saving my life," Caroline said, turning to face him.

That caught Klaus off guard. He wasn't used to people thanking him, let alone having a _reason_ to thank him. "You're welcome," he answered quietly. A few seconds later he added, "I know we got off on the wrong foot, and I wanted to..." He seemed to choke on whatever he was going to say next. "apologize."

Caroline only smiled and continued to admire the artwork. What he had done to her and her father wasn't okay, and it would never be okay. She couldn't forgive him.

At least not yet.

-xxx-

Caroline was sitting at the dining room table the next day, a glass of animal blood placed in front of her. She folded her hands and leaned forward, examining the deep red liquid. It even _looked_ repulsive. She couldn't drink that again. No way.

"Staring at it won't make it taste any better, sweetheart," came a familiar English voice from behind her. Klaus sauntered forward and stopped when he was right beside her.

Caroline didn't look at him. "I'm trying to decide if desiccation would be less torture than drinking this."

Klaus chuckled as he took a seat next to her. "It's not so bad once you get used to it."

"Funny. That's what your siblings say about you," Caroline teased, grinning at him.

Klaus raised his eyebrows, surprised that she could go from being terrified of him to laughing with him in only a few days.

"You guys should really run by the hospital and stock up on some blood bags," she continued.

Klaus opened his mouth and shut it again before he said anything about the curse. He didn't want her to know about it just yet.

"Well, here I go," Caroline sighed, tilting the glass toward her lips and taking a small sip. Her face twisted in disgust and she slammed the drink back down on the table.

Klaus gave her a knowing look. "I'll get the wine." There was a _whoosh _as he flashed away, only to come back less than a second later with the bottle of red wine. He poured some in her glass, mixing it with the bitter-tasting blood.

"Thanks," Caroline mumbled as she tasted it, nodding her head in approval. "Much better. Not good, but better."

Klaus smiled at her. "Is that what you think of me then, if we're still using the blood as a metaphor?"

Caroline chuckled. "I don't know." And she didn't. She knew there was much more to Klaus than the parts she had met, and she had plenty of time to figure the rest of him out.

-xxx-

**A/N: Okay, so like I said, it was a really short and uneventful chapter. BUT, I _promise_ you the next chapter will be worth the wait! Reviews are always welcomed ;) I love hearing your thoughts and theories!**

**P.S. I don't know if any of you watch Once Upon A Time, but I've been getting some serious Rumbelle feels lately which is great because it's inspiring me to write more of this fic, but it's also not great because this ship is ruining my life! Well, not any more than Klaroline is. Klaroline is the ultimate life-ruining ship.**

**P.P.S. Again, it's not a serious blog so I don't normally post about my fics, but my tumblr is _funny-tvd-things_ if you want to follow and fangirl with me over Klaroline :)**

**-Morgan  
**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I think it's become pretty obvious that I don't own TVD or any of its characters.**

**A/N: Thank you for all the wonderful reviews! I appreciate every single one of them. Getting to read all your thoughts and opinions is the best part of my day :) In answer to someone's question, yes Stefan is the one who helped her through her transition, but do you remember in 2x06 when she was talking to her mom about how she doesn't like animal blood? Hope that clears things up :)**

**I struggled a little bit with the last update because I was so excited to get to this one, but today I locked myself up in my room and pounded out this chapter. I really hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! Sorry it's so short!  
**

-xxx-

For the past few days, things at the mansion had been...good. Caroline had found friendship with Kol and Rebekah, but also with Klaus, surprisingly. He wasn't the remorseless bastard she had first met. Instead, he was someone she could see herself becoming close with.

Klaus wasn't sweet like Rebekah or playful like Kol. He wasn't light or optimistic or anything Caroline was usually drawn to. And yet, she found that she was attracted to him.

Wait, _what?_

No. There was absolutely no way Caroline was attracted to the man who had every intention of killing her father before she had shown up to take his place as prisoner. _Hello_, he was holding her captive! What decent person would ever be attracted to someone like him?

But she _was_, which meant she was obviously not a decent person.

"Tell me more about The Hunger Games," Rebekah demanded, a wide smile stretched across her lips. She had been sitting in the living room with Caroline, asking all about pop culture and everything that was "in," so to speak. "I love Peeta. There aren't many guys as sweet as him. But Gale seems so handsome, from what you tell me..."

Caroline rolled her eyes at her friend. "It's a story about survival and family, not about who she's going to end up with in the end."

"True, but I can at least appreciate the romance."

Kol was sitting on the couch opposite the girls, scoffing. "Well, _I_ want to know more about this Harry Potter fellow."

Caroline shook her head in awe. "Have you guys been living under a rock for the past two decades or something?"

Kol and Rebekah exchanged a look before breaking out in laughter. If only the girl knew how right she was.  
"You could say that," Rebekah responded.

"At least we didn't have to experience all that Twilight craze," Kol said.

"Hey," Caroline snapped. "It's not _that_ bad."

Kol laughed bitterly. "They're vampires that _sparkle!_ You don't take any offense to being compared with Tinkerbell?"

"You know who Tinkerbell is?" Caroline asked. "I just began to assume you knew nothing about anything from this century."

"Technically it's not from this century. It came out in '53."

Rebekah and Caroline rolled their eyes simultaneously at the youngest Original. "Oh, Kol, stop being a smart ass," his sister told him.

Several minutes later, Rebekah and Kol were too busy arguing to notice that Caroline had slipped out of the room. She wandered down the hall with no real destination in mind. Part of her was hoping she'd run into Klaus. She hadn't seen him all day and she missed him, although she would _never_ admit that.

Suddenly, Caroline heard the creak of the wooden floors, and she stopped walking. She looked to see who was approaching, but no one was there. She knit her eyebrows together in confusion before shrugging and turning around, almost walking right into Klaus.

"_Oh my God!_" Caroline yelled, jumping back a few feet. Klaus smirked at her. "You scared me!"

"My apologies, love. Were you going somewhere?"

Caroline shrugged. "Just wandering."

Klaus pulled a small velvet box out of his pocket and handed it to Caroline. "I wanted to give you something."

Caroline tilted her head to the side and examined the box he was holding out to her for a moment before taking it and opening it. Inside was a diamond infinity-link bracelet that looked equally as fancy as it was probably expensive (if he even paid for it). She carefully picked it up and held it between her fingers, her jaw falling slack.

"I've had it for a while... I thought you might enjoy it," Klaus told her, gauging her reaction.

Caroline broke out into a grin and wrapped the bracelet around her wrist. She threw her arms around Klaus's neck and hugged him before she even knew what she was doing. He barely even had time for his shock to register before she pulled away, looking embarrassed.

"Sorry," she mumbled, staring at the floor.

Caroline looked up at Klaus again. His expression was emotionless, like he was trying to hide whatever he was really feeling. She could've just walked away right then. She could've saved herself from any more embarrassment. But no, of course she had to go and make things worse by reaching up and planting a kiss right on his stubbled cheek.

"Thank you," she said, leaning back to look into his cobalt eyes. His expression softened, and he gazed back at her.

In that second, everything seemed to melt away. It was just the two of them. Later, Caroline would think how cliché it seemed, but right now she was too far gone to care. They stood like that for who knows how long, each waiting for the other to make a move.

Without really thinking it through, Caroline moved forward and pressed her lips to his lightly. She brought up the hand that wasn't holding the jewelry box and placed it on his shoulder. He responded by cradling her face in his hands and pulling her closer, but a second later he broke the kiss. His expression was impassive again, and he flashed away before Caroline had a chance to say anything.

-xxx-

That night, Caroline sat on her bed, fiddling with the diamond bracelet Klaus had given her earlier. She still hadn't taken it off, even though it served as a constant reminder of the embarrassment she felt when she kissed him.

She didn't know why she had done it. Okay, maybe she did. She liked him! She liked his aura of mystery and his complexity. He was her balance; the darkness to her light. And above all, he intrigued her.

But why did he run away? Were her feelings one-sided? Had she completely misread the entire situation? What did she do wrong?

Unable to sit still any longer, Caroline jumped off her bed and headed for the kitchens. She needed something to drink. More than that, she needed to occupy herself so her thoughts wouldn't drive her crazy.

When she reached her destination, she realized that she wasn't alone. Klaus was sitting at the table, clutching an almost empty bottle of bourbon. He didn't turn to look at Caroline when she made her entrance. Instead, he spoke with his back to her.

"Evening, sweetheart." He sounded drunk.

Caroline walked around the table so she was facing him. "Are you alright?"

Klaus chuckled without humor. "Why do you care?"

"Because you're my friend, and I want you to be okay." Caroline took the seat across from him. "If this is about earlier...I'm sorry. It was a mistake. It won't happen again."

"'_Mistake_,'" Klaus repeated. "So you regret it? You wish it had never happened? It meant nothing to you?"

"I never said that."

"You might as well. We both know that no one could ever care for me." He hated this. He hated feeling so vulnerable, but the alcohol was making him say things he never wanted to say if he were sober. He didn't want Caroline to know of his insecurities. They were hard enough to admit even to _himself_.

"That's not true," Caroline countered, her perfect eyebrows furrowed in concern. Then, so quietly that Klaus almost missed it, she added, "I care for you."

"Don't you understand, Caroline? I'm not good for you! I'm not good for anyone! I'm a monster! I kill people! Why can't you see that?!" Klaus stood up and threw the bottle of bourbon at the wall, smashing it into a million pieces. He slammed his hands on the table and leaned forward far enough so his face was a breath away from Caroline's.

Instead of cowering in her seat, Caroline straightened up and glared back at him fiercely. "You can't scare me away."

Klaus narrowed his eyes. "I'm never going to change," he warned her.

"I'm not asking you to."

They glared at each other for several minutes, neither of them speaking. Slowly but surely, Klaus's anger dissipated and he moved away from Caroline, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Go to bed, Caroline," he ordered.

Caroline stood up and made to leave, but not before resting her hand on Klaus's shoulder briefly. "Goodnight," she whispered. And then she was gone.

-xxx-

Elena was just walking down the stairs when the doorbell rang. Before she could reach it, however, Damon Salvatore came barging in.

"Hey!" Elena scolded, annoyed with his lack of respect for her privacy.

"We have a problem," he said.

"I know. Caroline's missing."

"Yeah, not so much."

"What?! You know where she is?!"

"Papa Forbes does."

Elena pulled her jacket off the banister and shrugged it on as she moved towards the door. "Then what are we still doing here? We have to find her!"

Damon grabbed her by the arm to keep her from leaving. "You're not going."

"She's my _friend_, Damon."

"And right now, she's in a house full of vampires. It's not safe for you."

Elena's eyes widened in shock. "What are we going to do?"

"_We _ are not going to do anything. You'll stay here while Stefan, Bonnie, Liz, Bill, and I go save her."

"You aren't getting the council involved, are you?"

"Do you think I'm stupid? Of course not."

"Then you're going to need more than five people if you're planning one of your elaborate heists. There's no telling how old those vampires are."

"Which is exactly why you're not going."

Elena tried to leave again, but Damon clamped his hands down on her shoulders, holding her in place. "Damon, _please_," she begged, tears glistening in her eyes.

"Elena. We'll get her out of there. I promise."

-xxx-

**A/N: Well, it seems that even though Klaus has a curse to break, he can't get over his aversion to love. Maybe that will change as the story goes on, but you'll just have to wait and see! ;) Again, sorry for the short chapter!  
**

**Review, review, review!**

**-Morgan**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Do I need to keep doing this? Hasn't it become clear that I don't own TVD or any of its characters? Ugh fine, since I'm afraid of lawyers and their fancy suits and sophisticated legal jargon...I own nothing.**

**A/N: Thank you all _so_ much for your feedback. I love all of you dearly and each review makes me want to cry and laugh and dance and ugh I just love all of you, okay? You give me the motivation I need to keep writing :D Enjoy this chapter!**

-xxx-

"It's been two _days_, Nik!" Rebekah shouted, but Klaus continued to ignore her. He had his back turned to all his siblings, working on another painting and pretending they didn't exist.

"Ignoring us won't do you any good, Niklaus. You'll have to listen eventually," Elijah reasoned.

Finn scoffed. He was leaning against the wall and staring off into space, detached from the rest of his siblings as always. "He won't listen. He won't do anything unless it benefits himself."

Klaus rolled his eyes as he dipped his brush in more paint, coating the canvas with it.

Rebekah sighed exasperatedly. "She finally showed some interest and you just shut her down! The twenty-one year mark is just around the corner and if you don't fall in love with her soon we'll be stuck here forever!"

Still no response.

"And by _soon_, I mean _today!_" she tried, throwing her hands in the air when she was met with more silence. "Come on! You wanted the curse broken more than any of us!"

Another beat of silence.

"NIK!" Rebekah yelled. "Please! I just want to get out of here so I can live a normal life, and I know you want that too. I don't want to live in constant fear that Mikael will find us while we're trapped here. Please do this, not just for me but for all of us. And for you."

Klaus tuned her out. He wasn't going to let her guilt trip him.

Rebekah's eyes glistened with tears, and Elijah placed a hand on her shoulder in comfort. "Niklaus, we are running out of time. I know you don't want to live off animal blood for the rest of eternity. We both know what little tolerance you have for it."

Klaus continued painting.

_It could use more shadows over here... Maybe some more red for the leaves, it is Autumn scenery after all..._

"Maybe I'll go for her instead," Kol chimed in, "since you don't have dibs on her anymore. I could really show her what it's like to be _ravished_."

That does it.

Klaus dropped his paintbrush and stormed over to Kol, his eyes dangerous. "_First_," he growled threateningly, "Caroline is not _property_. No one has _dibs_ on her. And _second_, if you so much as touch her, I will tear you limb from limb until you are begging for mercy."

Kol smirked. "Finally, a reaction."

Klaus's jaw ticked, but he finally relaxed after a few seconds of glaring at his brother. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "It's useless to try and win her over now. I blew it."

"Did you?" Rebekah asked, her tone annoyed. "Or are you just trying to convince yourself of that so you don't feel guilty for not trying?"

Klaus's eyes flicked to his sister, irritated. "Don't test my patience, Rebekah."

"Oh, Nik. You know your threats mean nothing to me."

"Stop arguing," Elijah demanded. "Niklaus, will you or will you not try again with the girl?"

Klaus couldn't look at any of his siblings. His face was turned away from them as he answered, with his fists balled at his side in annoyance. "Fine," he spit through clenched teeth.

-xxx-

Caroline was sitting on her bed flipping through the pages of _War and Peace_. It wasn't exactly her first choice when it came to reading, but she didn't recognize any of the other books the Originals had, so she settled on Tolstoy. She figured she would eventually come to know all the books cover-to-cover since she was going to be stuck here for eternity.

Of course, she didn't have to read. She could hang out with Kol and Rebekah or ask Elijah to tell her stories of the viking days or the medieval times, but she couldn't bring herself to leave her room and risk facing _him_.

Caroline sighed loudly. Reading was supposed to be a distraction. It was supposed to get her mind off of everything, but for some reason she couldn't keep her mind busy with anything except the last few days. The kiss, talking to a drunk Klaus... Every time she managed to shake her thoughts, the memories would come back. Having to suffer the embarrassment over and over again every second of the day was not fun, to say the least.

There was a soft knock on the door, pulling Caroline out of her reverie. "Come in," she called out hesitantly, closing her book and standing up to greet whoever was at her door.

The door creaked open, and Caroline was facing the last person she expected to see. "Klaus?"

First, she felt immense relief. She had begun to worry that this was what it would be like for the rest of her existence—them avoiding each other. Luckily, that wasn't the case if he was standing here now. Then she felt anger. Not just a mild annoyance, but a boiling rage that coursed through her veins and made her want to hit him and yell at him and tell him how miserable she'd been for the past two days.

She didn't do any of that, however. Instead, she crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes. It was enough to let him know that she was pissed as hell.

"You have every right to be angry," Klaus said as he clicked the door shut behind him and stepped toward her carefully, "but let me explain."

"_Explain?_" Caroline let out a bitter laugh. "You've ignored me for two days. _Two whole days_, Klaus! That may not seem like a lot to someone as old as you, but for me it was hell."

The corner of Klaus's mouth twitched upwards. "Don't you think you're being a little dramatic, sweetheart?"

"I am _not_ being dramatic! Have _you_ ever been locked in a house against your will, making mistake after mistake and having nothing to do but replay them over and over again in your head?!"

Klaus chuckled. "I may understand that better than you think, love.

"Would you stop trying to make a joke out of this?!"

His smile vanished. "Do you think I'm trying to be funny? None of this is amusing to me."

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Why are you here?"

Klaus took a deep breath, trying to figure out how to say whatever it is he needed to say. "I wanted to apologize, and I wanted to give you an explanation for my...behavior."

"I'm listening."

"I fancy you, Caroline. You're beautiful, you're strong, you're full of light... I enjoy you," he admitted.

Caroline's expression softened. "What's the problem then?"

"I can't be who you want me to be. Who you _need_ me to be. That's not who I am, I'm not good. You need someone who's going to give you the life you deserve, someone less dangerous and with less enemies. I'm not that person for you."

There was a short pause before Caroline spoke. "That's not it," she decided. "You're afraid."

Klaus glared at her. "_I'm not afraid_."

"Yes, you are. The idea that someone might actually care about you scares you."

"Sweetheart, I'm a thousand year old hybrid. I'm not afraid of anything."

"Believe me, I've met plenty of guys like this. You don't want to have any weaknesses, so you push everyone away."

"Don't you dare compare me to dimwitted, human, teenage boys. I'm _nothing_ like them."

"I know you aren't, and that's why I like you. I just can't help but see the similarities there." Caroline paused, and then added, "Look, even if what you said was true, you don't get to make that decision for me. It's not up to you to tell me what kind of person I should be with."

Klaus was silent.

"I know what I want," Caroline said firmly. "But I won't push you to feel the same way." She reached up to briefly press her lips to his cheek before giving him a sad smile and heading to the door to maybe roam the gardens for a while.

Suddenly, Klaus grabbed her by the arm and spun her around towards him before taking her face in his hands and crushing his lips to hers. She was caught off guard for a moment, but responded a second later by running her hands up his arms and gripping his strong shoulders. She tilted her head to the side and opened her mouth, her sweet breath mingling with his as she explored his mouth with her own.

Caroline's fingers tangled in his dark blonde hair as his hands moved to wrap around her waist, pulling her closer against him. He broke away from her lips only to trail desperate kisses down her jaw and neck. She threw her head back to allow him better access and let out a sigh of contentment as his mouth moved upwards toward her jaw again, his tongue lightly tracing her skin. He lingered there for a moment before capturing her bottom lip between two of his own.

This wasn't like any other kiss Caroline had experienced. All of her boyfriends in the past had been rough with their kisses, and they had a hurried edge to them as if they couldn't get her out of her clothes fast enough. Klaus was different. His kisses were gentle, but they were passionate. He was making every second count. There was no rush.

It didn't surprise her, really. When you could live for eternity, you had all the time in the world to appreciate the smaller moments. Moments like this, where the only thing Caroline could think about was Klaus's soft lips against her own, making her undead heart race with adrenaline.

"_Klaus_," she whispered as she brought her hands from his hair and ran them down his chest, toying with the hem of his shirt.

Klaus grabbed her wrists, stopping her before she could begin to undress him. He smirked against her mouth before pulling away. Her look of disappointment made him chuckle.

"Do me a favor? Don't call me Klaus anymore."

"What do you want me to call you?" she asked, confused.

"Nik."

Caroline narrowed her eyes. "I thought you didn't want me to call you that. You know, '_I am not Nik to you..._' Ring a bell?"

Klaus shrugged, trying to hide his smile and failing miserably. "Things change."

Caroline felt her heart swell. It was a small gesture, but letting her call him that was a symbol of intimacy. He was letting her in, and he was sharing a piece of himself with her. It was small, but it gave her hope.

"Nik..." she said, trying out the name.

Nik leaned down, attaching his lips to hers briefly before pulling back again. "Much better," he breathed.

-xxx-

Alaric was sitting in the Grill downing another glass of bourbon when Damon sat down next to him. He didn't have to look up to know he was there.

"Hey, Ric," Damon greeted his best friend.

"Don't you have a rescue plan to hatch?" Alaric asked, turning to face him.

"Don't you have papers to grade?" Damon retorted, smirking before saying with a sigh, "I need your help. Elena wants to come with us to save Caroline."

"She can't! It's too dangerous for her, she's only a human!" Ric's eyes shone with concern.

"I know, that's why you need to babysit her while we're carrying out the plan."

"That didn't make a difference last time," Ric reminded him, thinking of when she snuck out to go to the masquerade ball.

"You weren't watching her closely enough last time. This time, you're not letting her out of your sight, even if that means tying her to a chair to keep her from leaving."

Ric sighed, defeated. "I don't know what good it will do, Damon. Once Elena sets her mind to something, there's no stopping her." He paused. "But I'll try my best."

"Great. Now, do you mind if we borrow some of your vamp-killing weapons?"

"What do you need?"

"Crossbows, wooden bullets, vervain grenades...you know, the usual."

"What's your plan of attack?"

"Ask Stefan. I'm sure his plan differs from mine."

"What's _your_ plan?"

Damon paused before answering, his lips curling upward in a cruel smile. "To kill all of them."

-xxx-

**A/N: So Klaus and Caroline are together now, but how long will their happiness last? ;)**

**I'm not going to beg for reviews, but..._please review!_ Pretty please with a cherry on top? I want to know your thoughts, theories, opinions, suggestions, etc. It means so much to me! I love you all, thank you for reading :D**

**P.S. Should I make a side blog where I can post about my fanfics and possibly write drabbles or is that a dumb idea? Let me know :)**

**-Morgan**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: AU where I own TVD and all of its characters...**

**A/N: I get really emotional every time I read a review, so I'm not exaggerating when I say I just sat in front of my computer crying over how amazing all of you are! Thank you so much for all your reviews and follows and favorites. I appreciate and love every single one of you.**

**In answer to someone's question, there's no set day that I update this fic. I try to get a chapter out there once a week, sometimes twice a week. Sorry for the sporadic updates, but I'll be super busy for the next couple of weeks and that's the most I can do! (I'm actually supposed to be working on a project right now but I felt bad for not updating in a while so I'm writing this instead.)**

**Enjoy!**

-xxx-

"Caroline!"

Caroline was just on her way to Nik's art room to see him when Rebekah's voice pulled her up short. She turned around to face the grinning Original who was walking towards her, an obvious spring in her step.

"Hey," Caroline greeted her. "What's got you so happy?"

Rebekah shrugged. "I know about you and Nik."

Heat filled Caroline's cheeks as she stared at the ground. "Oh," was her genius response.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to pull the protective sister act," Rebekah reassured her.

"How did you find out?" Caroline asked. It's not like they were keeping it a secret, but they hadn't told anyone either. Not that it was hard to figure out.

"The way you two look at each other, how you're calling him Nik now... I've also never seen him so cheerful before. It's nice...not to mention strange."

"So you're okay with it then?"

"Why wouldn't I be? I've seen the way he looks at you, like he can't believe you're real. He also admires your bravery. The fact that you gave up your entire life to free your father without a second thought intrigues him. He's not used to people not being afraid of him."

Caroline lifted her head to look at Rebekah, who was now staring off into space, lost in her own thoughts. She was pulled back into reality when Caroline spoke up. "That's so sad."

Rebekah tilted her head to the side. "How so?"

"Doesn't he get lonely?"

"I think he likes being feared. It keeps people from crossing him because they're scared he'll retaliate if they step out of line."

"But loyalty born out of fear isn't real," Caroline pointed out.

"I suppose that's true," Rebekah allowed. "But he has his family. And you." Her lips turned up at the corners. Caroline returned the smile, brightening the mood significantly. "I'll let you be on your way then."

Caroline stood there for a second, watching Rebekah walk away. Yes, it was depressing how Nik didn't have anyone besides herself and his family, but how well did she really know him? She knew Rebekah meant well by coming to speak to her, but it opened her eyes to the fact that Nik had done things to make people fear him. Things that—she assumed—went beyond kidnapping.

_What else has he done?_

Caroline decided to store that thought in the back of her mind for the time being. Right now, however, she just wanted to see him and be with him without worrying over things that probably weren't even worth worrying over.

With a clear mind and a smile on her face, Caroline skipped toward the end of the hallway and turned into the art studio. Nik was there, as expected, with a paintbrush in his hand. The sleeves of his henley were rolled up, revealing his perfectly muscled arms and making Caroline feel weak in the knees. There was something extremely alluring about a man who's an artist.

Nik set his paintbrush down on the table next to him. The artwork seemed to be almost finished. It was abstract, with many textured strokes covering the canvas.

"It looks beautiful," Caroline commented as Nik turned around to face her. She folded her arms over her chest and walked towards him, stopping when she was just inches away.

Nik smiled. "It's not nearly as beautiful as you."

Caroline chuckled. "That was cheesy."

"That doesn't mean it wasn't true."

Nik wrapped his arms around her waist and touched his lips lightly to hers.

Caroline pulled away the tiniest bit to say, "Do you want to go do something today?"

He frowned. "Like what?"

"I don't know," she said, shrugging. "Just something to get out of the house. I'm going a little stir crazy, and I'm sure you are too."

"Why don't we do something here?" Nik suggested.

Now it was Caroline's turn to frown. "There's nothing to do here."

"There's plenty to do here."

Caroline unwrapped herself from him and crossed her arms. "Name one thing to do that isn't reading or wandering around the gardens."

Nik pursed his lips in thought before he slowly broke out into a grin and gestured toward the canvas. "We could paint."

Caroline sighed. "I'm a terrible artist."

"Let me rephrase. _I'll_ paint. You can be the subject."

Caroline perked up, bouncing on her toes slightly. "Okay! But I'm not letting you do it Jack Dawson style."

"Who?" Nik asked.

Caroline shook her head in awe. "You honestly don't know who Jack Dawson is?" Nik stared at her blankly. "From the _Titanic_?"

Recognition flashed across Nik's face. "I knew him, but I only ever talked to him once. Interesting bloke."

"...I'm talking about the movie."

"They made a movie out of it?"

Caroline ignored his question. "Wait...were you on the _Titanic?_"

"Rebekah and I were, but there's no record of us ever being aboard. Go sit down over there and I'll tell you about it."

Caroline grinned and turned away from him, heading to the small armchair on the other side of the room and sitting down. She crossed her legs and folded her hands in her lap after brushing her hair forward so her blonde curls hung over her shoulders. She smiled as she would if her picture were being taken.

Nik turned the canvas so she couldn't see what he was painting and picked up his paintbrush. He pulled up a chair to sit in while he worked. "You're going to be very uncomfortable sitting in that position for so long. Lean back, relax."

Caroline followed his orders, uncrossing her legs and slouching a little. "I completely trust your creative judgement...but I don't think this will look as good."

"I know what I'm doing," he assured her.

"Okay," Caroline said skeptically. After a few moments of silence where the only sound came from the steady strokes of Nik's paintbrush, she added, "So tell me about the _Titanic_."

Nik smiled, taking his eyes off of what he was doing to study her features for the painting. "Rebekah and I were living in England at the time. Southampton, to be exact. We heard of this ship that was impossible to sink, and we were curious about it. We compelled our way into first class under the pseudonyms Mister and Miss Astor. It was fun while it lasted, but of course, you know how that story ends. We were first class, so we got were put in the lifeboats first, not that we needed to be. We're vampires, we could've survived the Atlantic ocean, but the subzero temperatures would've been rather unpleasant. They tried to separate Rebekah and I, so I compelled them to let me go with her. It definitely wasn't a boring night," he joked.

Caroline's face twisted into a frown. "You went in a lifeboat just because you didn't want to be cold? Those spots could've been used by people who actually needed them." Her tone was disapproving.

"Relax, sweetheart. It's only two people."

"But they're _people_, Nik! People who had lives and families and futures."

Nik clenched his jaw. "It doesn't matter. It was in the past, there's nothing I can do to change it."

"Would you change it if you could go back?"

"No."

Caroline glared at him, but his eyes were trained on the canvas. "Nik—"

"I told you before, Caroline," Nik snapped. "I'm not good. I do things like this. I kill people, I take lives, I leave a path of destruction everywhere I go. I thought you understood that."

"I do, but—"

"But what? Don't you know what you got yourself into?"

Caroline was silent.

"It's not too late to back out. Just say you don't want this, that you don't want me, and I'll leave you alone. It's that simple."  
Nik had stopped painting and set down his brush, waiting on Caroline's answer.

Caroline's features softened as she stood up to walk towards him. "I don't want out," she told him firmly. "I want you. All of you—the good with the bad."

Nik stared up at her, his expression unfathomable. Caroline was unsure whether he was angry or not, but before she could ask, he pulled her into his lap and kissed her.

Caroline immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back, their lips moving in perfect synchronization. She twisted around so her legs wrapped around him. Nik held her by her waist and picked her up, pinning her to the wall behind them at supernatural speed. His lips moved down her jaw, her neck, but before they could dip any lower, there was a loud throat clearing in the doorway.

"Sorry to interrupt," Finn said, "but I was hoping to borrow Niklaus for a moment. We'd like to speak to him in the study."

Nik set Caroline back on her feet but didn't let go of her. Right now, she was the only thing that was keeping him from ripping his brother's throat out.

"Of course," Caroline said, blushing.

Nik leaned down, his lips near her ear. "Later," he promised.

Caroline nodded, watching him as he brushed past his brother and out of the room. Finn stayed behind, giving her a curious look.

"I don't understand you, Caroline," he said, taking a few hesitant steps toward her.

Caroline was too shocked to respond right away. Finn never talked to her. He rarely ever talked to his siblings either. He was usually off in his room doing his own thing, which most of the time was reading. The last thing she expected was for him to reach out to her and try to have a conversation, but it seemed he was doing just that.

"How could you care for him after everything he's done to you?" Finn continued.

"He wasn't the same person before."

"Are you really that blind? He's never going to change. He manipulates people through fear, and when they outgrow their use to him, he kills them. You're nothing but a game to him...a way to keep himself entertained."

Caroline shook her head. "You're wrong." She wanted to believe that he was lying, but her thoughts from before worked their way back into her mind without her permission.

_How well do I really know him?_

Maybe she was just a toy to him. She didn't know him like Finn did, so it was entirely possible that he was capable of doing something like that. Caroline couldn't just turn a blind eye to all the things he'd done to her and her father. She couldn't shut out all the unwanted thoughts and believe a lie, if that's what it was.

All of this was just so confusing.

"Believe me, Caroline. It's in your best interest to break things off now while you have the chance. He wouldn't hesitate to kill you if he ever got bored of you. It's who he is now and how he's been for the last thousand years. I would hate to see that happen to you."

Tears stung Caroline's eyes. "You're lying."

Finn sighed. "Fine, don't believe me. You can't say I didn't warn you."

Suddenly, Nik walked back into the room and stood beside his brother, his eyes dark. "What's going on here?" he growled, glaring at Finn.

_If looks could kill..._

"Nothing," Finn answered.

Nik never took his eyes off of him. "The others are waiting."

Finn gave Caroline one last, sad glance. "Please be careful," he told her.

-xxx-

"What the _hell_ was that?!" Nik yelled once he and Finn met Elijah, Rebekah, and Kol in his study. He threw him across the room and into the wall, knocking down as bookcase as he did so. "Do you want to break the curse or not?!"

"What happened?" Rebekah asked, her eyes wide.

"Finn decided to go running his mouth to Caroline about why she shouldn't trust me when he knows that doing so could get us all killed!"

Finn stood up, remaining as calm as he could. "She needed to know what she was getting herself into."

"She _knows_ what she's getting herself into!" Nik shouted. He grabbed the collar of Finn's jacket and shoved him into the wall, veins appearing under his now yellow eyes. "You're going to ruin this whole thing because you couldn't keep your damn mouth shut!"

"Finn, are you an idiot?!" Kol yelled.

Uncharacteristically enough, even Elijah couldn't keep his calm. "If we are found, we will have no where to go. We'll be trapped here, Finn, do you understand?"

"Do you have a death wish?!" Nik shouted in his brother's face. When Finn didn't say anything, Nik released him. "You do, don't you? Nothing has changed. You still refuse to accept what we are, so you're constantly on a suicide mission."

Kol groaned. "Really, Finn?"

"You're pathetic," Nik added, backing away.

"At least I'm not a monster," Finn said.

Rebekah laughed once without humor. "Maybe not, but you're more selfish than any of us! It you want to die, fine, but the rest of us? If you go down, you won't take us with you."

"It'd be better than letting you live. Mother trapped us here for a reason."

"But she gave us a way out," Elijah said. "If Niklaus can manage to get the lovely Caroline to fall in love with him, we'll be free."

"And I was doing a perfectly wonderful job of that before you had to go screw everything up," Nik grumbled. "Stop getting in the way, Finn. We need Caroline to break this curse."

"What curse?" came a voice from the doorway where a very angry Caroline now stood.

-xxx-

**A/N: I'm so sorry about the long wait for this chapter! I had massive writer's block and on top of that, my schedule has been pretty hectic lately. Thank you to those of you who stuck with me! Please, please, please review! Even if you're yelling at me for how long it took to get this chapter up! I want to know what you think of the story. Do you like it, do you hate it? What can I improve? What are your theories, opinions, suggestions? _Please?_**

**Also, I made the sideblog! It's sexwithjomo on tumblr. Big shoutout to Yana (queenofklaroline on tumblr and on here) for the URL! She is amazing and you should all follow her and read her fics Eternal Love and Hold Onto Me. They're brilliant!**

**Much love,**

**Morgan**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I'll let you know if I morph into LJ Smith and own TVD and all of its characters. But right now I'm still just Morgan and I don't own any of it.**

**A/N: Thank you so much for all of your reviews! Seriously! I love you all so much and I wish I could bake you a cake made out of rainbows and smiles and we'd all eat it and be happy! I hope you like this chapter :D**

**P.S. I know some of you don't like the parts I write about the Mystic Falls gang, but they're important to the story so I have to include them. I'm sorry.**

-xxx-

Caroline had decided to follow Finn and Nik several minutes after they left. She needed to talk to Nik about what Finn had told her. She couldn't just push it to the back of her mind and pretend he'd never said anything. Making herself forget about it won't make the truth go away, whatever the truth may be.

"_You're pathetic,"_ Caroline heard Nik say right before she passed his study. She stopped and decided to listen for a bit before making her appearance known.

"_At least I'm not a monster,"_ she heard Finn say.

Rebekah laughed humorlessly. _"Maybe not, but you're more selfish than any of us! If you want to die, fine, but the rest of us? If you go down, you won't take us with you."_

"_It'd be better than letting you live. Mother trapped us here for a reason."_

"_But she gave us a way out," _Elijah chimed in. _"If Niklaus can get the lovely Caroline to fall in love with him, we'll be free."_

A lump formed in Caroline's throat. What was he talking about? Free from what? Was Finn right? Was Nik just using her?

"_And I was doing a perfectly wonderful job of that before you had to go screw everything up," _Nik grumbled.

Caroline's hands started shaking with anger. She could literally _feel_ the knife in her back. How could she have been so stupid?

"_Stop getting in the way, Finn. We need Caroline to break this curse," _Nik continued.

Caroline had heard enough. She moved to stand by the door, in full view of all the Originals. "What curse?" she demanded, crossing her arms. She was sure she looked furious on the outside, but on the inside her heart was shattering into a million pieces. The Originals stared back at her in shock, but Nik's expression was unfathomable.

"What curse?" Caroline repeated.

Nik looked at Elijah and nodded toward the door. He took the hint and shuffled past Caroline, his other siblings close at his heels.

Nik waited until they were gone before saying, "Sweetheart, why don't you come in and have a seat."

Caroline grit her teeth and stood firmly in place. "One; stop with the pet names. I'm not your 'sweetheart' or your 'love.' Two; you don't get to tell me what to do."

Nik was silent for a few moments. He didn't like the way she was speaking to him, but he knew he deserved it. Whatever she heard must've sounded terrible when she didn't know the whole story.

Taking a deep breath, he said, "Caroline, please come in and let me explain."

"Why should I do you any favors?"

"Because if you don't—" Nik caught himself before continuing. If it were anyone but Caroline, he would've been throwing around threats like there was no tomorrow.

"Please?" he asked instead, hating himself for begging. But you know what they say. Desperate times call for desperate measures and all that.

Caroline shook her head, but she didn't leave, so that was a good sign.

"Give me today," Nik asked. "Let me give you the whole story. If you still hate me after, then I'll leave you alone. It's your choice."

Caroline's eyes narrowed as she studied his features, wondering what he could possibly say that would make all of this okay. She knew she didn't owe him anything, and she had every right to walk away without letting him explain himself, but she was curious.

"Fine," she agreed.

Nik visibly relaxed. "Come with me," he ordered as he headed for the door.

Caroline cleared her throat and crossed her arms even tighter across her chest.

Rolling his eyes, Nik corrected himself. "_Please_ come with me."

If she weren't so mad at him, maybe she would've smiled. "Where are we going?" she asked as he led them out of the study and down the hall towards the front door of the mansion.

"You'll see," he answered.

-xxx-

"Thank God you're here," Elena breathed as she opened her front door and let Stefan inside.

"What's wrong?" the youngest Salvatore asked, stepping past her as she closed the door behind him.

"It's Damon. He won't let me come with you guys to rescue Caroline, but I _have_ to go. She's my best friend, I can't just sit here and do nothing."

Stefan shook his head. "You have to, Elena. It's not safe for you to come with us."

Elena's eyebrows knit in confusion. "I thought you would understand. You know how important Caroline is to me, Stefan."

"And we're going to get her out of there. I promise we are. But we don't know how old those vampires are that are keeping her hostage. We're already worried about Caroline's safety, we don't need to be worried about yours too."

"So I'm supposed to just sit back and hope that you all don't get killed?"

"Everyone is going to be okay," Stefan tried to reassure her.

Before Elena could respond, the doorbell rang. With an exasperated sigh, she pulled it open, revealing Tyler Lockwood on the other side.

"Elena," he greeted her. "Is Caroline here?"

"No, she's not. Do you need her?"

"I need to know where she is. I haven't seen her for weeks and she isn't answering her phone."

"Have you considered that she might just be ignoring you?" Elena offered. It was no secret that Tyler was infatuated with Caroline, but his feelings were one-sided.

Tyler rolled his eyes. "I'm being serious. I'm worried about her." Stefan and Elena exchanged a look,which didn't go unnoticed by Tyler. "What's going on? Look, if you know something you need to tell me."

Elena considered him for a moment before sighing and opening the door wider. "You might want to come in, Tyler."

-xxx-

"We're going on a little walk," Nik told her as they stepped outside.

Caroline glanced up at the sunset, her eyes wide with concern.

"The full moon isn't tonight," Nik said, certain that she was remembering the last time she was out here. Caroline immediately relaxed, but she looked confused.

"We're leaving the house?"

"Not exactly." Nik's eyes scanned the forest they were walking through. "I'm surprised no one has chopped down these trees and built anything here... It looks the same as it did twenty years ago."

Caroline tilted her head to the side. "You've lived here for that long?"

Nik nodded, staring ahead for several minutes before speaking up again. "We didn't plan on it. Our father has been after us for a thousand years. We can't stay in one place for too long or he'll eventually find us and kill us."

"Then why are you still here?"

"It's complicated." Nik sighed. "Twenty years ago when we were all living here, I wanted to move immediately. We grew up in this town, and it had too many bad memories. On top of that, it was boring. The others didn't agree with me. They wanted to stay and build a life here. I threatened to leave without them, and no one protested. So in a moment of blind rage, I went on a killing spree."

Caroline cringed. "That's a little extreme."

Nik smirked. "I get a little moody," he admitted. His smile faded as he continued. "My mother, Esther, was angry with me for what I'd done, so she cast a spell on us to keep us from hurting anyone else."

"Is that the curse you need me to break?"

"It's much more complex than than you think, but...yes."

As the sun dipped lower in the sky, as did the temperature. Caroline tried to run warmth into her arms, not even noticing that Nik had slipped out of his jacket until he had wrapped it around her. She didn't want to accept any of his kind gestures, but at the moment she was too cold to care. She pulled it tighter around her as they kept moving through the forest, listening to the leaves crunch under their feet.

Suddenly, Nik stopped walking. Caroline stopped walking too and turned to face him, confused.

"Why did you stop?" she asked.

"I can't go any further."

Nik held out a hand and pushed, but some invisible barrier was blocking it from going through. He was either a very good mime, or this was the spell he was talking about.

"Esther trapped you here?"

"We can't leave until I learn to care about others. I have to fall in love with someone and they have to love me in return in order for the curse to be broken. If I don't break it in twenty-one years, we'll be stuck here forever. That wilting rose you saw in the west wing signifies how much time we have left. When our time's up, it will be dead."

"So you thought that I could be that girl for you. The one you fall in love with," Caroline concluded.

"Yes," Nik confirmed.

"Why didn't you tell me?" _Not that it would've made a difference,_ Caroline thought.

Nik walked towards her slowly. "Because I wanted your feelings to be real. And I didn't want you to feel like you weren't worth anything to me beyond your ability to break this curse." He was only a few inches from her now, but she wasn't backing away. She wasn't giving in either.

"You really expect me to believe that you were only looking out for me?" she asked incredulously.

"Yes," Nik whispered, his sweet breath washing over her and making her feel like kissing him right then and there. But she wasn't that easy. He would need a lot more than a few charming words to prove that he was worth forgiving.

"Believe it or not, Caroline, I care about you. I don't want to lose you because of this." He leaned down, but Caroline turned her head to the side at the last second, causing his lips to land on her cheek.

"Please don't," she breathed.

Nik pulled away, his eyes confused.

"I just...I just need time," Caroline explained. "You lied to me, and I can't forgive you that easily."

"I don't know if I can wait."

She smiled briefly, but it was gone in an instant. "Well, lucky for you, I'm terrible at holding grudges."

-xxx-

"So that's that," Elena concluded, leaving Tyler open-mouthed and dumbfounded on the couch.

"Then what are we still doing here? We need to go save her!" he exclaimed.

"No, Tyler, be smart," Stefan said. "We don't know what we're up against. If we go barging in there without some sort of a plan, there's a good chance that we'll die. Caroline too."

"Then what's the plan?" Tyler demanded.

"Don't worry about it."

"I need to know what the plan is if I'm going with you."

Stefan and Elena exchanged glances. "Tyler..." Elena began.

"Don't try to talk me out of it," Tyler said. "I'm going, and there's nothing you can do to stop me."

-xxx-

**A/N: Sorry for the short chapter! As always, thank you for reading. Hugs for everyone who reviews! ;)**

**Tumblr: sexwithjomo**


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: Forever crying because I don't own TVD or any of its characters.**

**A/N: I bet you guys weren't expecting an update so soon! I felt bad that the last chapter was so short, so I'm hoping a quick update can make up for that ;) Thank you all _so_ much for your reviews. Seriously. I could write a novel on how grateful I am to all of you for your feedback and support. I don't deserve any of you, so thank you :)**

-xxx-

Nik was pacing in his study, completely stressed out. He wasn't as worried about the curse as he was about Caroline. He knew the truth had to come out sometime. He was eventually planning on telling her, but in the right way at the right time. But with Finn's words swirling around in her head, of course she was going to take it badly.

There was a knock on the door and Nik stopped pacing.

"Come in," he called.

Elijah opened the door and stepped inside, shutting it quietly behind him. "Niklaus," he greeted his brother as he turned to face him.

"Elijah."

"How did things go with Caroline yesterday?" he asked.

Nik clenched his jaw. "She said she needed time."

"_Time?_" Elijah repeated. "We don't have time. The rose is almost completely wilted." Despite his anxiety, his voice remained as calm as ever.

"_I know that, Elijah_," Nik growled through his teeth. "But I need to earn her trust again."

"How long do you think that will take?" came a voice from the doorway. Both Elijah and Nik turned to see Kol strutting into the room, a scowl on his face. "I'm itching to get out of here."

"However long it takes for Caroline to forgive him," Elijah answered Kol, his eyes never straying from Nik.

Kol threw his hands up in frustration. "We're never going to break this curse!"

"Would you forget about the curse for five damn seconds, Kol?!" Nik yelled. "It's not all about that!" He took a deep breath to calm himself down before continuing. "I'll give Caroline however long she needs. I owe her that much."

"You really do care for her," Elijah observed.

"Isn't it obvious?" Nik replied bitterly. For centuries he had believed that caring was a sign of weakness, and he was not weak. However, he'd had twenty years to reconsider due to the fact that caring was the only way he would get out of there. Still, it was tough to admit that he did have feelings for her...or that he had feelings for anyone at all, really. And that was terrifying to him because if he had trouble admitting that he even felt something for her, how would he admit that he was in love with her when the time came?

-xxx-

"Caroline?" Rebekah whispered as she poked her blonde head through the door.

Caroline was sitting on her bed reading a book. She looked up at Rebekah and closed it, resting her thumb in between the pages she was on.

"You can come in," she said.

Rebekah closed the door quietly and tiptoed over to Caroline's side, sitting on the edge of the bed. "I'm sorry," she told her. "We should've told you about the curse sooner."

Caroline brought her knees up and hugged them to her chest with the hand that wasn't still holding the book. "Yes, you should've. But thank you for apologizing."

"Did Nik explain everything to you?"

"He did."

Rebekah paused. "Is there...any chance of you forgiving him?"

Caroline nodded. "I'm working on it."

They sat in an uncomfortable silence for several minutes before a light bulb went off in Rebekah's head and she perked up, her eyes shining with hope. "Would you be willing to see him tonight?"

"I don't know, Rebekah..." Caroline narrowed her eyes suspiciously, not exactly sure where the Original was going with this.

"Would you rather sit up here in this room all night?"

Caroline pursed her lips in consideration. She _was_ planning on reading for the rest of the day and retiring to bed early, but whatever Rebekah had in mind seemed a lot less boring.

"Okay."

Rebekah clapped her hands together. "Stay here. I need to go talk to Nik."

-xxx-

"No way," Nik argued.

"Come on! Please? It'll give you another chance to talk to her. And let's face it, she's never going to forgive you if you ignore her all the time," Rebekah told him, placing her hands on her waist.

"I'm not ignoring her, I'm giving her space."

"No, you're being a coward."

Nik glared at his sister. "I beg your pardon?"

"You're being a coward," Rebekah repeated. "You're only scared she's going to reject you again, but she won't. She'll love this."

He stared at the ground for a while, contemplating what he should do. He knew Rebekah was right. As cheesy as it was, Caroline would love it. And it was only one dance. How much harm could it do?

"Fine," Nik finally gave in.

Rebekah grinned. "Perfect. Go pick out something nice to wear and be ready by 7 o'clock." She spun on her heel and skipped toward the door, only to stop when another thought crossed her mind. "Oh, and Nik?"

Nik sighed. What more could she possibly want? "What?"

"Wear one of Elijah's suits. No offense, but he has better taste." With that, she flashed out of the room to go meet with Caroline.

-xxx-

"What's the occasion, again?" Caroline asked.

She was seated in a chair in front of her vanity as Rebekah curled her hair and gathered it into a loose up-do, leaving two perfect blonde ringlets to frame her face.

"I've had that dress for two decades and I saw an opportunity for it to get worn," Rebekah explained, referring to the blue ballgown spread out on her bed. "And I'm sure Nik would love to see you dressed up."

"Yes, and Nik should always get what he wants," Caroline mumbled sarcastically as Rebekah spun her around in the chair and began touching up her makeup.

"He's not a bad guy, Caroline. He didn't want to lie to you."

"That doesn't change the fact that he did."

Rebekah sighed. "I know what Finn said about Nik only seeing you as a way to break the curse, but it's not true. Yes, you need to fall in love with him in order for the spell to be lifted, but he needs to fall in love with you too. It works both ways."

Caroline chuckled. "Yeah, that doesn't make me feel pressured at all," she snapped, "to know that my future is decided for me."

"No, you get to choose whether or not you want to be with him. No one's forcing you."

Caroline blew out a loud breath. "I just don't want to think about this curse anymore."

"Then don't," Rebekah suggested.

Caroline didn't have a response.

-xxx-

"You look absolutely dashing, brother," Kol mocked.

Nik smirked. "Come now, Kol, we both know I'd look better on my worst day than you ever would on your best."

Kol chuckled. "Keep thinking that, Nik."

Nik stood in front of the mirror adjusting his tie. He had taken Rebekah's advice and borrowed one of Elijah's suits. He felt absolutely ridiculous dressing up for one dance, but this was for Caroline. If there was one thing he knew about her, it was that she loved spontaneity and surprises.

Suddenly, Rebekah burst into the room, not even bothering to knock.

"What's taking you so long?" she demanded.

"Relax, Bekah. It's only two minutes after seven," Nik said.

"And I _told_ you to be ready by 7 o'clock, did I not?"

"Well, I'm ready now."

"Then wait downstairs while I go fetch Caroline."

Rebekah flicked her hair over her shoulder and spun around, flashing out of the room at supernatural speed.

"_She's_ in a good mood," Kol commented, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"You know how she gets when things don't go her way," Nik added, turning away from the mirror and heading for the door. He left the room and started down the hallway towards the stairs. When he reached the bottom, he turned back around and saw Caroline standing at the top.

Nik's eyes widened and his jaw fell slack. She was absolutely _radiant_. The blue ballgown Rebekah loaned her fit her curves in all the right places. He could see her bright blue eyes from all the way at the bottom of the staircase as she stared at him, her lips curving upward into the smallest of smiles.

Caroline descended the stairs gracefully, stopping when she was right in front of him.

"Good evening," he greeted her, his voice low and husky.

"We can skip the polite chit-chat." She didn't sound angry. She actually sounded like she was trying her hardest to hold back a smile, which made Nik break into a wide grin.

"Very well," he said. "Would you like to join me for a dance?" He held out his hand for her.

"But there's no music," Caroline argued.

"We don't need music."

Caroline eyed his hand suspiciously for a moment before taking it and letting him lead her to the center of the room. He wrapped one arm around her waist as she placed her hand on his shoulder. They both held each other's free hand, in the proper dancing position. They kept a respectable distance from each other, swaying to the nonexistent music.

"So how is the forgiveness thing coming along?" Nik asked her.

Caroline rolled her eyes. "I told you I needed time to get over it. And even then, I don't think we can go back to the way things were."

"Good," Nik said, his answer catching her off guard. "I don't want to go back to the way things were, back when I wasn't being honest with you."

"And you're being honest with me now? No more secrets, no more lies?"

"I give you my word," he promised.

Caroline smiled.

"Now tell me about you," Nik said.

"What about me?"

"Everything. What was your life like before you came here?"

Caroline shrugged. "You gave me your life story, so I guess it's only fair that I give you mine, although I guarantee it won't be as interesting." She sighed. "I was the captain of the cheerleading squad, head of the dance committee, Miss Mystic Falls... To most people, I seemed like I had it all."

"But?" Nik pressed. "There's always a 'but.'"

"But I wasn't happy. I always figured that I'd grow up, get married, have kids, and spend my days sitting on the front porch with my friends reminiscing about the high school glory days. When I became a vampire, all that was taken away from me. I couldn't grow up or have kids. I couldn't even stay in Mystic Falls for too long before people started realizing that I'm wasn't getting any older. I couldn't have the life I always thought I'd have."

"But is the life you expected to have really the life you _wanted_ to have?" Nik asked.

Caroline's eyebrows knit in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Is that really what you wanted? To have all the good times while you're young and spend the rest of your life looking back on it? Vampirism is a gift, Caroline. You don't have to look back and remember a time when you were young because now you'll be young forever. You're frozen in the time period that you enjoy most. What's so bad about that?"

Caroline considered what he was saying. She'd never thought about it like that, but he was right. There was beauty in being immortal if you looked at it from the right perspective.

"You've got a whole world out there waiting for you," Nik added, his face now inches from hers.

It was then that she realized they had moved closer. Her arms had wrapped around his neck and now both his hands were tight around her waist. She hadn't even noticed because she'd been too distracted by what he was saying. They were barely even dancing anymore. Instead, they were staring into each other's eyes, not sure what to do next.

Nik wanted more than anything to kiss her, but he wasn't going to try anything until she was ready. She had to make the first move.

Caroline was conflicted. For the second time since she found out about the curse, all she wanted to do was kiss him and make up. But she was stronger than that. When she told him she needed time, she meant it. So instead, she rested her head on his shoulder and just enjoyed being close to him without giving into her desires.

Thank you," she whispered.

Nik didn't respond. Instead, he only held her closer.

-xxx-

**A/N: So she's getting there, but she's not there yet ;) It was fun to write Rebekah taking charge and organizing the whole thing. The dance sequence was always my favorite part of Beauty & The Beast :) Thank you so much for reading!**

**P.S. Do you see that box down there? Yeah, it's calling you. It's telling you to review and leave your thoughts, theories, opinions, suggestions, etc. if you want to make my day and motivate me. You should listen to it :D  
**

**tumblr: sexwithjomo**


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I'm running out of ways to say that I don't own TVD or any of its characters.**

**A/N: So here we are at chapter 11! As some of you said in the reviews, shit's about to hit the fan! Speaking of reviews, I can't thank you enough for all your support and feedback and even your constructive criticism! You're all wonderful and I couldn't have asked for better readers. Anyway, I think you guys will like this chapter. It's my favorite that I've written so far ;)**

-xxx-

Damon twirled the wooden stake in his hands, his expression uncharacteristically serious, before setting it down and picking up another weapon. "Vervain grenade," he mumbled to himself as he tossed it in the air and caught it with the same hand. The, more loudly, he added, "I'll never get used to all the ways you can kill me, Ric."

Alaric smiled. "At least I know it'll keep you from crossing me."

"Hmm," Damon responded, shrugging.

"So what's the plan?" Tyler asked, eyeing the weapons incredulously. He, Damon, Alaric, Bonnie, Stefan, Bill, Liz, and Elena were all crowded around a table in the Salvatore boarding house where Ric had dumped his supplies.

"First, we need a diversion. We need something to catch them off guard before we attack, giving us an advantage," Bonnie answered.

"How are we going to do that?" Elena asked, still seeming to believe that she was going with them. No one bothered to correct her.

"I'll show up," Bill offered. "They think they've compelled me to leave and never come back. I'll be the perfect distraction."

"You expect us to send you in there as a pawn?" Elena asked, always worried about everyone else's safety. Damon fought the urge to roll his eyes.

"It's Caroline," Bill said. "It's my little girl in there."

There was a pause before Liz spoke up. "Then what? We attack?"

"_I_ attack," Bonnie corrected. "If I can use enough power to keep them down, the rest of you will come in with the stakes."

"Let's say these vampires are really old," Damon began. "Older than Katherine, even. You won't be able to keep them down for more than a second."

"That's what the vervain grenades are for," Stefan interjected. "We'll use those first, and then we'll grab Caroline and get the hell out of dodge."

"I thought we agreed on my way," Damon argued. "There's no guarantee that those vampires won't come after us after we rescue Caroline. They need to die."

"No one's going to die," Stefan replied, his tone resolute.

Elena placed a hand on his arm and his face softened as he looked down at her. "Stefan, we can't let them live. It's too dangerous. Not just for Caroline, but for all of us."

Stefan watched her for a moment, conflicted. But after a few seconds passed, his face hardened and he nodded at Damon in agreement.

"Then it's settled," Damon said with his trademark smirk. "We'll attack tonight."

-xxx-

Caroline groaned in frustration as she wandered down one of the hallways of the estate. There was nothing to do! Well, that wasn't exactly true. There was plenty to do, but none of it interested her. She'd been reading so much these past few days that even the sight of a book made her want to throw up. All she wanted was a phone or a computer or even a TV.

No. No, she didn't want any of that. What she _really_ wanted was to get out of that house and do something fun. She wanted to go to the movies, go to the Grill, hang out with her friends... Caroline was tempted to ask Nik if she could leave for the day and come back later that night, but if she left, not even _she_ could guarantee that she'd come back.

With a sigh, Caroline decided to go to Nik's art room. It was like her own personal museum that would keep her busy for the next thirty minutes or so.

Caroline was relieved to find that no one was already in the room. It was just her and the beautiful paintings that hung on the walls. Her favorite was of the wilting rose. Nik captured the sadness and the beauty of it perfectly.

When she passed the easel that displayed the painting he had been working on, her breath caught. Although it wasn't completely finished, she knew exactly what it was. The girl in the picture had perfectly curled blonde hair that fell over her shoulders. She had piercing blue eyes and a smile that could bring light to the darkest of places. It was absolutely beautiful.

_And extremely exaggerated_, she thought.

Is this what Nik had been working on while she'd been avoiding him? The idea that the girl in this picture is what she looked like to him made her want to smile and cry at the same time.

All of a sudden, a light bulb went off in her head, and without really thinking it through, Caroline flashed out of the room to go find Nik.

-xxx-

Nik stood in his bedroom, facing the window that overlooked the gardens. He'd been doing that a lot lately. He found that he could think more clearly when he was standing still as opposed to pacing, which was what he usually did when he was stressed.

He wasn't worried about the curse. At least not as much as he used to be. Of course he was still concerned about being stuck in one place if Mikael ever decided to make an appearance, but there was something else too. Caroline. Even though she told him that she couldn't hold grudges for very long, he still felt as though he'd lost her forever.

But what if he had? Nik couldn't imagine a life without her in it, at this point. A foreign—and rather unpleasant—emotion surged through him at the thought of losing her. It was surprising, really. He hadn't felt pain in so many years that he almost didn't recognize it.

Nik was pulled from his thoughts at the sound of his door banging open. He whirled around to see Caroline standing there, her blue eyes glistening with unshed tears.

"Caroline?" he asked, taking a few hesitant steps toward her. "What's wrong?"

Caroline kicked the door shut behind her before throwing her hands up in exasperation. "Can you please just make me forget?" she begged.

Nik's eyebrows knit in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

Caroline paced back and forth in front of him, running a hand down her face. "Compel me. Make me forget everything so we can start over. I don't want to know about the curse or any of the other bad stuff. Just make it go away."

When Nik didn't respond, Caroline stopped pacing and stood in front of him, placing her hands on the back of his neck and forcing him to meet her gaze.

"_Please_," she whispered, her eyes pleading.

Nik unwrapped her arms from around him but kept a hold on her wrists. "No," he told her.

"Please—"

He cut her off before she could continue. "Do you remember what you told me before this mess? You said you wanted all of this. The good _and_ the bad."

A single tear rolled down Caroline's cheek. "But it would be so much easier if you just made me forget..."

"It would be easier, but it wouldn't be right."

"Since when do you care about what's right or wrong?"

"I only care when it comes to you." Nik dropped her wrists and cradled her face, wiping away her tears with his thumb. "I can't take away your memories. They're what define us."

Caroline opened her mouth to argue, but she was out of arguments. Nik was right, and that's what made her realize that she wasn't just a means of breaking the curse. She was so much more than that to him. If the curse was all he really cared about, he would've compelled her in a heartbeat.

So why had she been ignoring him for the past few days? Because she didn't want to seem weak if she gave in too soon? Caroline couldn't believe she'd been that stupid. She didn't need time to forgive him. She was just running away because she was _scared_. And _that's_ what was weak, not going after what she really wants.

"I could never do that to you," Nik added.

It was all Caroline needed to hear. Without another word, she crushed her lips to his.

_God, I missed this_, she thought as she threw her arms around his neck and he wrapped his own arms around her waist. His lips were as gentle as ever, even though he was kissing her with everything he had. She opened her mouth, allowing his tongue to slip past her lips.

Caroline ran her hands down his chest and tugged at the hem of his shirt. He broke the kiss for only a second to lift it over his head and toss it to the side. With a mischievous grin, she pushed him backwards onto the bed and climbed on top of him, pulling her own shirt over her head and discarding it. She leaned down to place kisses on every inch of his face as he undressed her.

There was a blur of movement as Nik flipped her over onto her back, and suddenly Caroline was pinned beneath him. He captured her mouth with his again, placing his hands on either side of her head to prop himself up while she worked to remove the rest of his clothing.

Nik's lips travelled down her neck, his teeth grazing her skin. Caroline sighed and tangled her fingers in his hair, her breathing becoming heavier and her heart racing faster in anticipation. Nik brought his mouth back to hers and ran his hands down her sides, his fingertips brushing past her breasts.

"I've missed you," he whispered against her lips.

Caroline smiled. "I missed you too."

-xxx-

When Caroline opened her eyes, she noticed that night had fallen. She was still in Nik's bed, her back pressed against his bare chest. His arms were wrapped tightly around her and their legs were tangled together under the sheets. She smiled as she remembered what had transpired just a few hours ago.

Caroline turned her head to see Nik, who was already awake. She twisted around so her face was close to his, but he kept one arm draped over her.

"Hi," she whispered.

"Hi," he returned. There was a short pause before he added, "So I take it you've forgiven me?"

Caroline laughed. "Yes. And I changed my mind about the compulsion."

Nik smirked. "I figured you would."

Caroline leaned forward and touched her lips to his lightly. "Thank you," she breathed, "for not going through with it. I don't know what I was thinking."

"I don't know what you were thinking either, but...you're welcome."

Nik gazed into her bright blue eyes and tucked a blonde curl behind her ear. Suddenly, a thought hit him, and he felt his heart sink.

"Caroline..." he started, but he wasn't sure how to continue.

"Yes?" she urged, her voice worried as she stared into Nik's sad eyes.

"I love you," he blurted out.

Caroline smiled, but she didn't let herself relax because she was sensing there was more he needed to say.

Nik sighed. "Which is why I'm letting you go."

"Wait...what?"

"You're obviously not happy here—"

"But I _am_ happy here!"

"—and you'll never _be_ happy unless you're with your family and friends again."

Caroline shook her head. "What are you saying?"

Nik brought a hand up to cup her cheek. "You're free to go, if that's what you want."

A few weeks ago, Caroline would've been out of there before he even finished his sentence. But now...? She wasn't sure _what_ she wanted.

-xxx-

Caroline had left Nik's room without giving him a definite answer. He hadn't really expected one right away, to be honest. It was a lot for her to consider, and she needed to be alone for a while to think about it. He wasn't exactly sure why he'd done it. All he knew was that he wanted her to be happy. Maybe it was because he loved her.

Nik thought briefly about the curse as he pulled on his pants. (Caroline had left in his shirt—don't even get him started on how she looked wearing only _that_—so he had to grab another one to slip on.) He still wouldn't be able to leave the house because in order for the spell to be lifted, she had to love him in return.

There was a knock on Nik's door and Rebekah poked her head in before he could tell her to come inside.

"You know, you should really wait for an invitation," he scolded her. "If you had let yourself in a few moments ago you would've gotten an eyeful."

Rebekah scrunched her nose in disgust. "Ew, I didn't need the visual."

Nik shrugged.

"I wanted to know why Caroline was walking back to her room wearing only your shirt?" his sister continued, her eyes full of hope.

"Why do you think, Bekah?"

Rebekah perked up and clapped her hands together. "Really?! So you're back together now?!"

"Don't get too excited," Nik warned. "She might be leaving soon."

The blonde's face fell. "Why would she do that?"

"Because I told her she could."

There was a beat of silence, and then suddenly Rebekah was yelling. "WHAT THE HELL, NIK? HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO US? TO ME?"

Nik clenched his jaw but he remained calm. "Because I love her."

That shut her up. She stared at Nik, her eyes wide and her mouth hanging open. After a few seconds, she snapped it shut. "And what about her? Does she feel the same?"

"I don't know."

"And you _still_ let her go? Nik, you're _so close_ to breaking this curse—"

Now it was Nik's turn to yell. "SHUT THE HELL UP ABOUT THE CURSE!"

Rebekah opened her mouth to respond, but before she could say anything, she was interrupted by a loud knock on the front door. She and Nik exchanged a look before hurrying down the main staircase at supernatural speed.

Elijah was there, as well as Kol and Finn. Caroline joined them less than a second later, still in Nik's shirt but with a pair of jeans too.

"What's going on?" she asked. "Who's at the door?"

Rebekah shook her head. "I don't know."

Usually if there was someone at the door, only one of the Originals would answer. But something was different this time. They all seemed to get the same bad feeling about whatever was waiting for them on the other side. Maybe it had something to do with the extremely familiar heartbeat they were hearing through the door.

Caroline crossed the room to stand next to Nik, who wrapped an arm around her and pulled her tightly to his side. Elijah stepped forward and opened the door slowly, revealing the person who had been knocking.

Caroline gasped in shock and her blood ran cold. "Dad?"

-xxx-

**A/N: I'm so sorry for leaving you like that! Please forgive me! D: Anywho, I was going to write smut for this chapter, but given that I already made the rating T, I decided against it. Also, I realized once I had written it that I literally had no idea what I was doing, so I should just leave it to the imagination!**

**P.S. This is such a random thought, but does anyone else get the feeling that Rebekah is the biggest Klaroline fangirl ever in this story?**

**Review, review, review! It's that convenient little box below where you can tell me what a heartless bitch I am for leaving you with that cliffhanger ;)**

**Many apologies,**

**Morgan**

**Also, you can continue to berate me for my evil ways on tumblr! My URL is sexwithjomo  
**


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: Blah, blah, blah, I own nothing, blah, blah, blah...**

**A/N: Wow. Thank you _so_ much for all your reviews. I can't even express in words how much they mean to me, but I think this is a pretty accurate description: ASDGFHHKASDJHKDAJHFGHKSDFGJA KSKL!**

_**Anyway**_**, enjoy this chapter! :D I updated quickly because I felt bad for leaving you all with that cliffhanger. This is my apology :)**

-xxx-

_*1 hour earlier*_

"Are we ready?" Stefan asked.

"Let's just grab our stuff and go," Damon said, tucking two wooden stakes in his back pocket and heading for the front door of the boarding house.

Stefan, Alaric, Bonnie, Liz, Bill, Tyler, and Elena trailed after him. As soon as Tyler tried stepping through the threshold, however, an invisible barrier seemed to block him.

"Okay, what the hell is this?" he demanded.

Elena frowned and tried going through the doorframe as well, but whatever was blocking Tyler was blocking her too. "Yeah, what's going on?"

Damon shrugged. "You two were a liability."

Tyler slammed his hands against either side of the frame. "You promised me I could help!"

"Plans change," Damon answered simply.

Elena threw Bonnie a pleading glance. "Bonnie, how could you do this?"

"It's for your own safety," the witch replied. "I've already got Caroline to worry about, I don't need to worry about you too."

Elena's exasperated gaze shifted to Stefan. "Stefan?"

The youngest Salvatore shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry. It's just not safe for you."

Elena clenched her jaw and shook her head, her eyes swimming with tears as she stormed away, leaving the others to continue on their merry way to go save Caroline without her. They ignored Tyler as he shouted at their retreating figures, calling them names that should never, under any circumstances, be repeated.

-xxx-

"Hello, Caroline," Bill said.

"I thought Rebekah compelled you to leave," Nik snapped, glaring daggers at his sister.

"I did," Rebekah spit through her teeth, not appreciating Nik's disapproving comments.

Caroline stepped away from Nik and walked towards her father, slowly at first, and then she broke into a run, throwing her arms around him and letting tears spill from her eyes.

"I can't believe it's you," she cried, her entire body shaking with sobs. Nik stared at the ground, fighting the guilt that threatened to make it's way in.

Bill returned his daughter's embrace, although his eyes remained on Nik, full of distrust.

Caroline pulled back. "How are you here?"

Before Bill had a chance to answer (not that he was going to; his resistance to compulsion was his _secret_ _weapon_, for crying out loud), the Originals suddenly clutched their heads in pain.

"Wh—" Caroline started, but before she could finish her sentence, Bill dropped to the floor, pulling her down with him.

There was a flash, and Caroline felt a few drops of vervain sprinkle down on her. She sucked in a sharp breath as it burned her skin, but her attention was on the Originals who had gotten the full impact of the explosion.

Bonnie appeared out of nowhere, her hands held out in front of her as she mumbled incantations under her breath, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. She seemed to be giving the Originals one of her witchy headaches, but they were only affected for about a second since their old age made them stronger.

"Bonnie, what are you doing?!" Caroline yelled. She tried to get up, but Bill fought to keep her down.

"Hurry!" Bonnie called to no one in particular. Or maybe there _was_ someone and Caroline just couldn't see them. How many of her friends had shown up? "I can't keep them down for long, I'm not strong enough!"

Suddenly Liz was there shooting wooden bullets.

"Mom, stop it!" Caroline pleaded.

Rebekah, Finn, and Kol were lying flat on the ground, allowing Bill to get up and quickly inject them with more vervain. Klaus and Elijah were stronger, but soon they fell to their knees and Bill plunged a syringe into them as well.

Caroline was completely frozen now, not sure how to help. She watched in horror as Damon came bursting into the room wielding a wooden stake. He aimed for Elijah first, plunging it into his chest. Elijah grabbed Damon's wrist to stop him, but he was weakened from Bonnie's spell and the wooden bullets and the vervain.

Seeing Elijah's graying skin is what brought Caroline back to her senses, but before she could do anything, Stefan and Alaric had appeared with two more stakes, embedding them in the hearts of Kol and Rebekah.

"NO!" Caroline screamed, racing toward the Originals. Stefan's head snapped in her direction and he flashed in front of her, blocking her path. "Stefan, what are you doing?!"

Over Stefan's shoulder, she could see her mother pulling yet another stake out of her back pocket and killing Finn with it. Then, she saw movement to her right.

"Nik!" she screamed.

Nik was stronger than the rest of his siblings. Damon quickly pulled out another stake, but before he could use it, Nik had him pinned him against the wall by his neck, fangs bared.

"Here!" Alaric called, tossing a syringe to Damon.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Caroline pushed past Stefan and tried to come to Nik's aid, but the Salvatore grabbed her from behind to hold her back. She struggled against him, but it was no use.

"LET ME GO!" she demanded, but he didn't listen.

In one swift movement, Damon caught the vervain and thrust the needle into Nik's side, giving him the moment's advantage he needed to knock him to the ground and sink the stake into his heart.

Caroline stopped fighting. There was no need anymore. Seeing the veins crawl up Nik's face as his skin turned ashen was the end for her. Her world had come crashing down and she just stood there and watched it happen.

Stefan's arms loosened around her and she broke away from him, kneeling down in front of Nik and holding his face in her hands. Tears streamed down her face and sobs racked her body as she stared down at him.

Nik," she whimpered. "Please wake up! Come back to me!" She clapped a hand over her mouth to stifle her sobs. She was aware of everyone behind her watching the scene unfold. They were probably wondering why the hell she was acting like this, but honestly she couldn't care less.

"Nik!" Caroline cried, her tone pleading. "_Please!_" But there was nothing she could do. He was gone.

Then, softly, she added, "I love you."

As if admitting it would change anything. As if somehow that would bring him back to life. As if it even mattered that the curse would be broken now. She was too late. This was her fault.

"We need to get out of here," Damon ordered gravely, the shock of her reaction concealed by his anger. They had just put all of their lives in danger, and for what? Caroline obviously hadn't wanted to be rescued.

Another round of sobs shook Caroline's body, and she felt her father's hand rest on her shoulder.

"Come on, Caroline," he mumbled. "Let's get you home."

_Home_. The word brought fresh tears to her eyes. She didn't have a home anymore. _This_ was her home. _Nik_ was her home.

Bill helped her stand up, almost having to _drag_ her away from Nik's side. She went with him reluctantly, clutching to his side for support and murmuring, "I loved him," all the way to the car.

-xxx-

Caroline woke to the sound of birds chirping outside her window. She kept her eyes closed, but from what she could tell, it seemed like it was going to be a beautiful day. Maybe she'd roam the gardens and pick some roses to put in a vase in her room. Or she'd ask Elijah to tell her more about the medieval times. They had always been interesting to her. And of course she would spend time with Nik.

Her eyes shot open.

Nik.

_Nik._

"You're awake," she heard Bill say. He was sitting across from her in an armchair, his arms folded across his chest.

Caroline felt her chest tighten in pain as she remembered the events from the previous day. She felt an overwhelming urge to cry, but her sadness quickly turned to anger as her father continued to speak.

"Do you want to explain to me what that was all about yesterday?" he asked.

Caroline sat straight up in her bed, glaring at Bill. "Do I want—WHAT?!" she sputtered. "If anyone has any explaining to do, it's _you!_ First you show up to a place that you were compelled to forget about, and then you go on to kill the man I love!"

Bill cringed. "How in the world could you love a man like him? He's a bad person, Caroline."

"You don't even know him! And who are you to pass judgement when you're no better than him?! You _killed_ him!"

"_I_ wasn't the one who drove the stake through his heart—"

"But you helped!" Caroline shouted, cutting off any weak excuse her father was trying to give her. She took a deep breath and struggled to calm herself down.

Bill stared at her sympathetically for a minute or two before speaking. "I can resist compulsion," he told her.

"What?"

"You asked me how I was able to go back to the house. I can resist compulsion."

"But...how?"

"It takes a special kind of focus," he explained. "It's a skill I've been improving for years."

Caroline shook her head in disbelief. "So when you were compelled to leave, it didn't work and you came back," she muttered to herself, connecting the dots.

"I only came back for you," Bill told her. "I couldn't leave knowing you were in danger."

"But I wasn't," Caroline snapped. "I was perfectly safe."

"How was I supposed to know that?"

Caroline sighed. She knew she was being unfair. He loved her, she was his daughter, so of course he would come back for her. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "You were only trying to help, I shouldn't have gotten upset with you."

Bill nodded. "It's alright..." He looked at the ground, lost in thought for a moment before meeting Caroline's eyes again. "So you're a vampire," he stated flatly.

Caroline lowered her head and whispered, "Yes." _Please, please, please don't react like Mom..._

Bill didn't say anything more on the subject which left Caroline confused. Was he okay with it or not? Before she could ask him, he tilted his head to the side and asked, "What happened while you were staying there?"

"Nothing," she answered, her voice breaking.

"It didn't seem like nothing."

"I don't want to talk about it. It doesn't matter anymore." Caroline could feel the tears coming again. "Nothing matters anymore. He's gone." It was the first time she'd said it out loud, and she hated the way the words sounded. Saying it out loud meant that it was real. He was really dead and he wasn't coming back.

Tears stained Caroline's cheeks as the reality of the situation hit her with ten times as much force as yesterday. Bill stood up and sat beside her on the bed, pulling her into a comforting hug and smoothing her hair.

"Shh," he whispered. "It's okay. I'm here. Everything will be okay."

Caroline nodded her head, wanting more than anything to believe him.

Being careful not to draw attention to what he was doing, Bill reached into his pocket and pulled out a syringe as he continued to comfort his daughter.

"I'm so sorry," he apologized before jabbing the needle into Caroline's side.

Caroline whimpered in pain as she felt the pierce of the needle and the rush of vervain through her body. It took effect immediately, causing her vision to ebb as she began to lose consciousness. The last thing she saw was her father's regretful expression as her eyes fluttered shut.

-xxx-

Nik groaned in annoyance when he woke up and saw the wooden stake planted in his chest. Damn. If only they hadn't had the element of surprise...

He pulled the weapon out of his chest and tossed it aside, chuckling. The beauty of being an Original was that regular wooden stakes didn't cause any harm. Sure, it was inconvenient to be knocked out for a few hours, but unconscious was better than dead.

Nik glanced over at his siblings who were still in their temporary sleep. He hopped up and walked over to Elijah first, ripping the stake out of his brother's chest. Next he helped Rebekah, then Kol, then Finn. After another couple of minutes, they all jerked awake.

Rebekah pushed herself off the floor and dusted off her clothes. "What the hell just happened?"

"We were attacked," Elijah answered. "They caught us by surprise and staked us."

Kol got to his feet and straightened out his jacket. "Eh, it happens."

Nik smirked at his brother before realizing that something was missing.

"Where's Caroline?" he asked.

"They took her," Elijah replied quietly.

There was a beat of silence, and then Nik was gone. He rushed out of the house and ran as fast as he could, barely aware of his siblings following after him.

"Nik, the curse!" Rebekah called. Slamming into the invisible barrier surrounding their home wouldn't kill him, but it would hurt like hell, and she was concerned.

Nik slowed down at her words, stopping right in front of where the spell was supposed to be. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration. This damn curse couldn't be more inconvenient! His anger made him want to uproot the nearest tree. Now how was he supposed to get to Caroline?

"I'll never see her again..." he realized. He hung his head and leaned forward to press his hands against the barrier, almost falling over as his hands fell through.

Finn, who had been silent up to this point, widened his eyes and reached out his hand hesitantly. When he was sure that no curse was blocking him, he flashed away from the group, probably to never be seen again. Three pairs of eyes watched in amazement as their brother blurred away from them.

"Nik..." Rebekah began. "Is it...?"

Nik took a step forward, crossing the invisible barrier that didn't seem to be there anymore. A slow smile spread across his lips. "It's broken," he confirmed.

Rebekah, Elijah, and Kol followed Nik's lead and passed through the spot they hadn't been able to pass in over two decades.

"You did it!" Rebekah squealed, squeezing Nik's shoulder.

"Well done, Nik," Kol praised.

Elijah nodded his appreciation.

Unlike his siblings, Nik wasn't in the mood for celebration. Yes, the curse was broken which meant Caroline had finally learned to love him, and that made him happier than he'd ever care to admit. But right now he had no idea where she was, and she probably thought he was dead. Therefore, he would have to find her before he did anything else.

-xxx-

The first thing Caroline felt when she woke up was a shooting pain in her neck. She rolled her head from side to side, trying to soothe the aching muscles before opening her eyes.

_What in the...?_

Where was she? The room—or cave, or dungeon, or whatever it was—was dark and cold. She was strapped in a chair, her wrists and ankles locked in manacles.

"Hello?!" she called, trying to yank herself free. She could hear a heavy door swing closed from somewhere nearby, and she shook her wrists more frantically. "Is someone there?!" There were footsteps. Whoever was holding her captive was coming down the stairs.

_Perfect. This is just what I needed,_ she thought sarcastically. _As if losing the man I love wasn't enough, now I've been vervained by my own father and trapped in a cellar by God-knows-who. What a fantastic week this has been._

The door to the cellar opened, and Caroline's eyes widened in fear as she saw who stepped through the door. She shouldn't have been surprised, really, but she still didn't want to accept it. Her heart quickened its pace and she stopped struggling against the restrains for a moment as she felt the betrayal course through her.

"Daddy?"

-xxx-

**A/N: Okay, so I think it's become obvious that I'm terrible at writing action sequences. Sorry about that. Also, I know if an Original gets staked, they're only out for a few hours (like Elijah in 2x09). I don't think they've addressed whether that same rule applies to hybrids, but for the sake of the story, let's say it does.**

**And I know you probably think I'm evil for leaving you with _another_ cliffhanger, but soon you'll realize that you were right and I _am_ evil. Sorry, it's just that the dark side wasn't kidding when they said they had cookies. Wow, terrible joke is terrible. Just ignore me. It was 3am when I wrote this, so don't hold anything I say against me!  
**

**Anyway, thank you so much for reading! What do I have to do to get you to review? Do you want bribes? I'll give you anything (within reason)! Just leave your thoughts, theories, opinions, suggestions, and even your criticism (I can take it)!**

**Love always,  
**

**Morgan**

**tumblr: sexwithjomo**


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I do not own TVD or any of its characters. They own _me_.**

**A/N: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HELPING ME REACH 200 REVIEWS! *throws confetti***

**You're all wonderful and I don't know how to thank you for all your feedback! If it weren't for your support, writing this wouldn't feel worth it. So thank you for taking the time to tell me your thoughts and opinions :) *hugs***

-xxx-

Nik, Kol, Elijah, and Rebekah all stopped short when they reached the town square. Who would've have thought that Mystic Falls could go trough so much change in only a twenty year period? Everything was much sleeker and more modern, and new buildings had popped up all over the place.  
The Originals watched as a woman rushed past them, and it seemed as if she were talking to herself. That is, until they saw some sort of headset in her ear and a voice coming through the receiver.

But it was still the same small town filled with small town people. Nik scoffed when he saw a monument in the middle of the square dedicated to the "founding families." Apparently the residents of Mystic Falls were still living under the illusion that their ancestors were the first to settle here back in 1864. Little did they know, this town was occupied _much_ earlier than that by the originators of the very thing they sought to destroy—vampires.

"Well, at least it's not _that_ different," Rebekah commented, her words bringing Nik back to reality.

"You there!" Nik shouted at a passerby who was just leaving the bar & grille across the street. The young man stopped walking and raised his eyebrows in surprise when he saw Nik approaching him.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

Nik clapped a hand on the boy's shoulder, a friendly smile in place. "What's your name?"

"Matt Donovan," he answered warily.

"Matt Donovan," Nik repeated, "would you happen to know a certain Caroline Forbes? Blonde hair, blue eyes, bubbly personality?" This guy looked young enough to be in the same age group as her, and it was a small town. Surely he must know her?

Matt still looked skeptical. "Yeah... How do _you_ know her?"

Nik chuckled. "It's not important." Before the boy had a chance to respond, Nik stared intently in his eyes, his pupils dilating as he compelled him. "I need you to tell me where she lives."

Once he found out that piece of information, Nik would one step closer to finding her and letting her know he was alive.

-xxx-

Liz snapped her phone shut with a sigh after leaving a message for Caroline asking if she wanted to have lunch at the Grill later. After not seeing her for so long, all she wanted to do was spend time with her daughter, but she hadn't been answering any of her calls.

Maybe Caroline didn't want to see her. Maybe she was still angry at her for being a part of the plan that killed "Nik," or whatever he was called. Liz wanted to talk to her, to tell her she was sorry and that she was only doing what she thought was right.

There was a knock on the door, and when Liz saw who was standing on the other side, her phone slipped out of her hands.

_What in the...?_

When she finally came to her senses, she placed a hand on her gun and opened the door cautiously.

"You must be Liz Forbes," he said, holding out a hand. "I'm Klaus."

Instead of shaking it, Liz eyed his outstretched hand suspiciously, and after he realized she wasn't going to take it, he withdrew. "I saw you get killed," Liz mumbled. "You were dead."

Klaus smiled bleakly. "And now I'm not."

Liz shook her head. How was this possible?

As if he could read her mind, Klaus began to explain. "You see, I'm not a normal vampire. None of my family is, because we were the first."

Liz stared at him in disbelief, and Klaus continued.

"And me? I'm a different kind of monster. I've got some vampire, I've got some wolf..."

"So you're telling me that my daughter was being held captive by not only the first generation of vampires, but by a..._hybrid? _Is that what your species is even called?"

Klaus nodded.

"Oh my God." Liz stumbled back and held a hand to her forehead, letting it all sink in. "How did you come back to life?"

"Regular stakes don't kill us. We're much stronger than that."

"Then what _does_ kill you?"

"Nothing," Klaus lied, smirking. Did she really think he would tell her? The woman already tried to kill him once.

A lightbulb seemed to go off in her head, because suddenly her eyes went wide and her hand flew to her gun again. "Are you here to kill _me_?"

"No. I'm here because I need to see Caroline."

Liz didn't relax. "She's not here. She hasn't been home all day."

Klaus frowned. "Well where is she?"

"I don't know. Her dad was the last person who saw her..." Liz's eyebrows pulled together in thought, and then something seemed to register because her expression now was ten times as terrified as it was when she thought her own life was at stake. "Oh no," she whispered.

Klaus took a step forward. "What is it?" he demanded, his tone dangerous.

Liz met his gaze. "I think I may need your help."

-xxx-

"I want you to know, when your mother told me what you were, I sat down and cried," Bill admitted. He was sitting on the floor of the cellar, his head in his hand.

Caroline was still strapped into the chair, her charred skin searing with every movement. For the past 48 hours, her father had been trying to torture her into resisting her nature. Each hour felt like a million years.

Due to the vervain in the ventilation system, each breath she took felt like she was inhaling a thousand razor blades. And without her ring to protect her, her skin would blister every time Bill would open the latch in the ceiling, letting the sunlight stream in.

Now here Caroline sat, her head hung low and dry tears staining her cheeks as she tried to plead with her father. "Dad, I'm okay. I've learned to adapt. I don't need to be fixed. I can't be fixed."

With an exasperated sigh, Bill straightened up and strode over to her with a blood bag in hand. "I always told you to try your best. I need you to try your best now."

He held the blood bag under her nose, and Caroline stiffened. She was weak, and the smell of blood was potent. After being locked away in the mansion with nothing to drink but forest animals, the human blood was twice as tempting. How did he expect her to resist it?

"Why are you trying to fix me?" Caroline asked, her voice breaking as a fresh bout of tears rolled down her cheeks.

"So I don't have to kill you," Bill replied forcefully.

Caroline's focus slipped, and she felt the veins crawl up her cheeks as she stared at Bill. If this worked—but who was she kidding, of course it wouldn't work—he would kill her. Her own father.

Bill backed away in disgust, but quickly regained his composure. "The sun's gone down. I'll try again tomorrow." With a gentle pat on her head and one last hopeless glance, Bill left the room, leaving her alone in the cold, dark cellar.

Great. Another day of torture. How long would this go on before he realized she would never be fixed? Days? Weeks? _Months?_

Caroline found herself wishing that he would just go ahead and kill her. He was going to do it anyway, so he might as well get it over with. Plus, he would spare her a lot of pain if he just went ahead and staked her instead of drawing this out.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a gun clicking. Her head snapped up and she used her supernatural hearing to listen to what was going on.

"Hello, Bill," she heard her mother say.

Caroline felt her heart swell with hope and relief.

"Put that thing down, Liz. I know what I'm doing," Bill tried to reason.

"That's our daughter in there," she said, her tone full of disgust. "She looks up to you. She loves you."

"Then she'll trust me to do the right thing. Let me do this, Liz. Not because she's a monster—"

Caroline squeezed her eyes shut, a pain worse than the torture spreading through her. She knew her father thought she was a monster, but hearing it out loud hurt her more than she was willing to admit.

"—but because we love her," Bill finished.

Liz was silent for a moment, and Caroline held her breath.

"Klaus," she called.

Caroline released the breath she was holding, and the pain in her chest increased tenfold. Nik was dead. It was impossible for him to be here, which only meant one thing. This was a dream. She was so desperate for someone to save her that her mind produced the ideal scenario—for Nik to be the one to save her.

Her imagination really was cruel.

She heard the slam of the door as someone entered the room outside, and then she could hear their footsteps as they climbed down the stairs.

_Wake up, Caroline, wake up!_

But she didn't want to wake up. Not really. She wanted to see Nik again, even if it wasn't real. Of course, when she woke up, it would be like he died all over again, but she would suffer through it if it meant seeing his face and hearing his voice one last time.

"You're not going in there," she heard Bill say.

There was a loud bang, and Caroline assumed Nik had slammed him against the wall. By the sound of her father's strangled protests, he was being held by the throat too.

"_You_ will not tell me what I can and can't do. I will rip out your heart so fast, you won't even have time to beg for mercy," Nik threatened, the familiar lilt of his English accent making Caroline's heart pound in her chest.

"You won't do it. Caroline would never forgive you," Bill choked out.

"Don't overestimate my patience."

There was another thud as Bill collapsed to the floor, breaking into a fit of coughs. Nik carefully opened the door to the cellar, his breath catching as he saw Caroline strapped to a chair in the middle of the room, her face colorless and covered in a sheen of sweat. Her arms and legs were suffering from severe burns that made him want to cringe.

How could her own father do this to her? How could _anyone_ do this to her? Nik feared that if he hadn't shown up sooner, she would've been killed. He clenched his jaw. It would be an unspeakable crime to rob the world of her light.

Caroline's eyes were sad as she stared up at him. "Nik," she whispered, choking on her tears.

Nik didn't waste any time rushing towards her, bending down and ripping off the manacles as if it were the easiest thing in the world. He tossed them aside and cupped her face in his hands, wiping away a stray tear with his thumb.

"I'm so sorry this happened to you, sweetheart."

"My ring," she said weakly, barely lifting her finger to feebly point toward her lapis lazuli ring that was resting on the floor of the cellar.

Nik dropped his hands from her face to pick it up and slide it on her finger. He then wrapped one arm around her back and tucked the other under her knees and lifted her up, cradling her to his chest.

Caroline buried her head in his neck, breathing in his scent and trying to remember it for when she woke up. She used all the energy she had left to cry, staining his shirt with tears.

"It's okay," Nik reassured her. "It's me. You're safe."

He carried her out of the dungeon with Caroline clinging to him, dreading the moment when she would have to let go.

-xxx-

Caroline was laying in bed, finishing off yet another blood bag and feeling her wounds heal and her strength being restored. It felt so real that she was tempted to believe this wasn't a dream. But of course, it had to be. It was too impossible...too unrealistic.

"Honey, your dad..." Liz began. She was sitting on the edge of her daughter's bed, trying to find some way to comfort her. "All of our families...we have beliefs that have been passed on through generations. We were taught never to stray from them."

"You did," Caroline pointed out.

"_You_ taught me to look at things in a different way."

"I just thought that he was the one who got me."

"He did. He will again," Liz promised.

Caroline paused. "Thank you for believing in me."

Her mother offered her a small smile, but didn't say anything else. Suddenly, Nik appeared in the doorway. His expression was unreadable as he saw Caroline curled up in bed, looking sad and empty.

"I'll leave you two to talk," Liz mumbled, getting up and stepping past Nik, heading toward the kitchen to fetch more blood bags.

Nik didn't say anything as he sat on the edge of her bed and took one of her hands in his.

"Is this a dream?" Caroline wondered aloud.

He tilted his head to the side. "Why would this be a dream?"

"Because there's no way that you're really here. You died...I saw you." Caroline fought the urge to cry again. "I don't want to wake up. Please don't let me wake up. I already lost you once, I can't lose you again."

Nik leaned forward. "This isn't a dream. I'm really here."

"But how? You were gone..."

"I never died. It takes a lot more than a simple stake to kill an Original vampire, especially a hybrid. Sure, it'll keep us down for a while, but we're back to normal in no time."

Caroline shook her head, not even bothering to conceal the tears that now rolled down her cheeks. She was surprised she had any left to shed, what with all the crying she'd been doing lately. "So all this time, you were alive?"

Nik nodded.

Caroline pulled her hand from his and sat up so they were at eye level. "But...I just spent 24 hours thinking you were dead!"

"And I'm sorry, Caroline. I'm so sorry."

"So this isn't a dream?" she clarified.

"No. This is real."

Caroline lurched forward and threw her arms around his neck, pulling his lips to hers and kissing him with more passion than she'd ever kissed him before. He responded after he got over the initial shock, wrapping his arms around her and putting as much into the kiss as she was.

She pulled away abruptly as another thought crossed her mind. "The curse!"

"Broken." Nik smirked. "And I wasn't even awake when it happened."

Caroline blushed a deep crimson. "It was bound to happen at some point."

"I know...but I want to hear you say it."

Her expression turned serious and she placed her hands on his shoulders, looking right into his deep blue eyes. "Niklaus Mikaelson," she said, addressing him by his full name, "I love you."

Nik smiled before crushing his lips to hers again.

-xxx-

**The next chapter will be the epilogue, and then it'll be finished :( But don't worry, because I've already started outlining my new fic, so be looking out for that! Thank you _so_ much for all your support. Really. I love you guys so much :D**

**Please review and tell me what you think. Your reviews are what motivate me to write! Tell me your thoughts, opinions, suggestions, criticism...you know, the usual ;) It means so much to me.**

**-Morgan**

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	14. Epilogue

**Disclaimer: I'm trying to come up with a creative disclaimer for the last chapter, but I can't think of one. Oh well, you know the drill! I don't own TVD or any of its characters.**

**A/N: I'll save it till the end.**

-xxx-

_*2 years later*_

Caroline slowly opened one eye, then the other. The sun was streaming through the window, warming her skin and making her blonde curls shine. She was in a hotel room in Paris with Nik's arms wrapped tightly around her as she rested her head on his bare chest.

For the past two years, they'd been traveling around the world, never staying in one place for too long. After being cooped up in that house for several decades, Nik wanted more than anything to escape Mystic Falls and visit all his favorite places to see how they've changed. Caroline was glad to come along and experience the world, especially if it was with him.

Careful not to disturb him in case he was sleeping, Caroline peeked up at him.

"Morning, love," Nik greeted her.

"I thought you were asleep," Caroline said, tracing light patterns on his chest with her fingertips.

"I've been awake for a while," he admitted.

"And you didn't get me up?"

"Why would I? We don't have to be anywhere for a while and you looked so peaceful..."

Caroline sighed and slipped out of his arms, slinging her feet over the side of the bed and hopping down. "You should get dressed. We're meeting them at noon."

Nik groaned and dragged a hand across his face. "Knowing Kol, that probably means one o'clock. We have plenty of time."

Caroline laughed at him. "Come on, we haven't seen them in months. And I promised Rebekah I would wait to shop at Céline until she was with me."

Nik rolled his eyes. "Of course you did."

He got out of bed and sauntered over to her. Caroline's breath caught. No matter how many years had passed, she would never get over the sight of him without a shirt. He smirked, knowing the effect he had on her.

Tucking a blonde strand of hair behind her ear, he said, his voice low and husky, "We still have a few minutes."

Caroline shook her head and smiled. "Not now, I have to get ready."

Nik leaned in, his lips barely brushing hers. "Are you sure?"

She paused. "Yes," she answered uncertainly.

He hesitated. The slightest movement would bring their lips together. Caroline tensed, waiting, but at the last minute he pulled away with a satisfied smirk.

"Okay. Go on, get dressed,"

"_Seriously?_" Caroline exclaimed.

Nik shrugged. "We're meeting them at noon, right? Well, we have exactly..." he checked the clock on the hotel nightstand, "30 minutes."

Caroline smacked his shoulder lightly. "You're such a tease." She backed away and headed for the bathroom to fetch her curling iron and get ready to see the others.

-xxx-

When Caroline and Nik reached the small cafe they planned to meet at, Rebekah, Kol, and Elijah were already seated outside. They all turned their heads in Nik and Caroline's direction, and Rebekah stood up to embrace her best friend.

"I missed you!"

Caroline hugged her back for a minute before pulling away. "It feels like I haven't seen you in forever!" she said as they took a seat.

"Where's my hello?" Kol asked, pretending to be offended.

Caroline chuckled. "I missed you too, Kol. And Elijah, of course."

Elijah gave her a small smile and took a sip of his coffee.

"How do you like Paris?" Rebekah asked. She knew it was Caroline's first time in the city, and that was always exciting and overwhelming. Rebekah remembered her own first trip to France like it was only yesterday. She and her brothers had just turned, and Kol and Elijah had been off doing their own things while she followed along with Nik as he traveled across the world. It looked much different back then, but it was still beautiful.

Caroline's blue eyes brightened as she answered. "It's amazing! Nik already showed me the famous attractions and gave me a lengthy history lesson on all of them. If I knew everything I know now about the French Renaissance, maybe I wouldn't have failed World History three years ago."

She gave Nik an amused look, to which he just shrugged and said, "At least you know everything I told you was accurate, seeing as I was around when it happened."

Kol leaned over and mumbled to Caroline, "If you haven't noticed already, Nik's a bit of a show off."

Caroline smiled. "Oh, I've noticed."

Before Nik could give his irritated reply, Rebekah cut in.

"So, where all have you shopped?" she asked.

"If you're asking if I've been to Céline yet, the answer is no," Caroline told her with a smirk. "But I thought we could go later today."

"Ooh, perfect! I was looking at their winter collection online—which, by the way, is a fabulous tool for shopping. It's been two years and I still haven't gotten over the beauty of the internet." Rebekah launched into a detailed description of everything she wanted to purchase. Caroline dived into the conversation enthusiastically, ignoring Nik, Kol, and Elijah's attempts at shifting the topic to something less tedious.

-xxx-

The rest of the day went by quickly, for Caroline and Rebekah, at least. They barely even noticed when Nik slipped away to head back to the hotel. Kol and Elijah had already left after lunch, not wanting to stick around while Rebekah and Caroline went on their shopping spree. Nik hadn't really wanted to either, so he decided to leave and get a drink at the bar in the hotel lobby.

When Caroline finally reappeared with shopping bags covering every inch of her arms, she spotted him immediately and made her way over with a disapproving expression.

"You didn't say goodbye to your sister," she accused.

Nik waved it off and set down his scotch. "She'll get over it."

Caroline opened her mouth to say something else, but he grasped her chin in his hand and pulled her lips to his, effectively cutting her off. She melted into his kiss, seeming to forget whatever it was she was going to say.

Caroline would never get used to him. He was always catching her by surprise, not only in moments like these, but ever since she first met him. She used to think first impressions were everything, but Nik showed her that wasn't necessarily true. He wasn't _always_ the bad guy. He was far from good, but every now and then she caught glimpses of a side of him that only she got to see. With her, he was truly a sheep in wolf's clothing.

The cruel, ill-tempered man she met two years ago turned out to be the most wonderful person she had ever met. And despite all the false impressions and misunderstandings along the way, she was glad he never compelled her when she asked him to. Because looking back, she wouldn't trade her memories with him for the world.

Nik leaned back with a smirk. "Why don't you set your things down in the room and I can show you the Versailles Palace?"

Caroline smiled. "Sounds like a plan."

And after a quick stop in their hotel room, Nik grabbed Caroline's hand and led her headlong into their next adventure.

-xxx-

**A/N: The epilogue was super short, but at least we got a visit from our favorite Originals ;)**

**I'm not good with goodbyes, and I know that sounds dramatic because this isn't technically "goodbye," but it feels that way to me every time I end a story. It feels like a season finale because I've been so invested in this story for so long that after it ends, I don't know what to do with myself! But I'll be back soon with a brand new Klaroline fic :D Speaking of which, here's the summary:**

**After vowing to herself that she wouldn't let boys become a distraction in her senior year, Caroline meets someone who changes her mind. And he happens to be her teacher. AU/AH.**

**It'll be my first AH fic, and I'm so excited!**

**Thank you _so much_ for reading this story! All of your reviews and alerts made me so happy and I can't thank you enough for your encouragement and support! I love you all, you wonderful people :D *hugs***

**One last review, for old time's sake? The box is down below... ;)  
**

**Until next time,**

**Morgan**

**tumblr: sexwithjomo**


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